The Olympians read Percy Jackson: LT
by Elandil
Summary: What would happen, if, on the night that Thalia died, the gods received a note and a rather strange package...? Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson or any of the characters, though I guess the gods are kinda public property
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson or any of the related stories (I wish I did but what ever) and I know that this may annoy some people as it is not a new story exactly, but I love reading these types of fanfictions and it really annoys me that none of them that I've found have ever been completed, so this is my way of fighting back **** I will hopefully finish this one, but if I don't, I guess that makes me a hypocrite, anyway, enjoy the story!**

"How dare you break the sacred oath, you swore not to have any more kids, along with the rest of us!"

Down on earth, large storm clouds dominated the skies while the dead shifted restlessly, for most, this would seem like an apocalypse, for the gods… well, lets just say their family needed a _lot_ more than just family counselling. High up in Olympus, in the throne room of the gods, the 3 brothers were fighting again, but then, that was nothing out of the norm.

"Whether or not I broke the agreement, you should not have taken it out on _Thalia, _she was only_ 12!"_

Zeus and Hades stood glaring at each other, shouting even though they were only a few meters apart at most. To the surprise of all the immortals present, Poseidon did not bother to join his brothers, not his younger nor his older one, but instead remained seated on his throne smiling slightly. However, before the argument (which had lasted longer than anyone in the room cared to count) could continue down yet another of its never ending directions that was sure to loop back to the beginning _again_, there was a short puff of smoke and a piece of paper about the size of a greeting card drifted to the floor in front of Apollo. That got everyone's attention.

"What do you think it is?" Hermes stared at the paper curiously, almost as though he expected it to grow wings and fly. But then, it is Hermes, everything grows wings around him.

"A challenge?" Guessed Ares, sitting slightly forward in his throne.

Artemis huffed and grumbled to herself slightly while Athena pointed out, "Not likely Ares, it wouldn't get in here if it was!"

Apollo stared at the scrap on his shoe thoughtfully before voicing his thoughts "Maybe it's a prophecy?"

"Or a recipe for Cereal?" The goddess pouted when everyone stopped to star incredulously at her before muttering, "What, it _might_ be!"

Zeus sat down in his throne, his previous anger forgotten in the face of this mystery, he even managed to laugh when Hades leaned across to stage whisper "I worry about her sometimes!"

For a few seconds the throne room was silent as everybody looked at Demeter with various stages of shock, and they probably would have remained that way for an undetermined length of time if something stranger had not just happened: in the empty space before the 13 filled thrones, there appeared several more, high backed and black as coal, but with different designs etched into the area that would be above the head of any mortal. Of the 13 chairs and the patterns each held engraved, the gods noticed their own symbols which, needless to say, inflamed their curiosity further, just what the Hades was going on?

Never one for silent contemplation of a situation (unless it involved a battle scene) Ares sprung to his feat and snatched the paper away from his half-brother and pulled it to his face, hesitantly, he began reading:

"_Dear past Olympians, we have only one thing to say as an explanation for all the freaky stuff that's going to happen next and it is quite simply thus:_

_We're bored!_

_Now enjoy this and try not to do anything _too _unreasonable, though if father and Uncle p are there, it is pretty much a tall order…_

_Yours truly_

_Pheobus Apollo and Hermes _

_P.s. Please stop Athena from trying to kill us, after all, we would like to watch these things happen ourselves in the future (and you did give us permission to do this), good luck!"_

By the time he had finished reading, all eyes were locked on the brothers, who shared a puzzled look and cracked up laughing, if this was one of their jokes, it should probably be at least a little entertaining. Still, even they were wondering what mischief they had planned (and managed to gain their sister's consent for) when the box landed on Hermes' lap. It was a neatly labelled package addressed to the gods on mount Olympus. Again they shared a look before Apollo grinned, pounced on his brother, and tore open the package, only to let out a short growl of disappointment:

"Books! It's just book! No wonder Owl head let us send them, I bet she just wanted to read them herself before they had even been published!"

Ignoring the insult in favour of new knowledge, Athena poked her head over his shoulder and snatched up one of the volumes before checking the jackets of the other 4. She remained silent, the gears in her mind whirling as she tried to make some sense of what had just happened, however, it was a crazy plan cooked up by her insane half brothers, even she couldn't figure out that much. What bothered her though, was the fact that she had given permission for this… why would she do that?

Bored of the silence already, Zeus snapped at his favourite daughter in a slightly sharper voice than e had meant to, it looked like he still wasn't entirely over the loss of his youngest daughter:

"Quit stalling Athena, what are the books about?"

"Some kid named Percy Jackson it looks like, though I can't really figure out much else. The book "Percy Jackson and the lightning thief" has a number 1 on it, I guess we better start with this one!"

While the others argued over who would read first, or simply grumbled about having to waste time with a stupid book, no one noticed that Poseidon had suddenly gone exceedingly pale… I wonder why?


	2. I Vaporize My Pre – Algebra teacher

**Disclaimer: same disclaimer as the other chapters, I own nothing but the plot in the none bold sections.**

**My thanks to:**

**IcyRose66**** – ****Thank you, and here's the update you ordered :P**

**Rochelle daughter of Thalassa- ****Yay, thanks, and here's your chapter!**

**Enjoy!**

"Quiet!" Zeus shouted over the cacophony of noise echoing round the throne room, all the other immortals had been "discussing" who would read the book first, and somehow, it seemed that they just could not agree. Sitting back and rubbing his temples like he had a headache, he now spoke to the silent room softly:

"This is getting us nowhere, just decide who it is that is going to read the damn book, and do so _quietly!" _He stressed the last word while glaring at his sons, of course he could leave it to them to do something this irritating and, well, confusing.

However, before the gods could once again begin their quarrel, a silver light flashed and all but one of the chairs were filled with a strange assortment of teenagers, from athletic tanned, girls to a small boy with pitch black hair and skin so pale it was almost translucent. The already overloaded minds of the gods looked about to frizzle out, something that was not lost on the new arrivals who immediately burst out laughing.

"Dad was right, this was totally worth it!" One of the boys managed to get out between his giggles.

"Yep, definitely!" The one who could have been his twin replied. The only one who seemed to be even remotely composed was the girl who sat in to the right hand side of the middle chair (the only empty one) and even she had to bite her lip to hold it in. Her grey eyes twinkled in amusement.

Turning to this girl Zeus directed his questions at her:

"What is the meaning of this child?"

Even if the question took her by surprise she hid it with a face that was unreadable yet fond, however, in her voice, the humor was still apparent and the king of the gods growled, he did not like to be made fun of, especially if it was a joke he didn't know.

"My Lord Zeus, I assume you have already received the letter from the Lord Apollo, so we really aren't allowed to say anymore, after all we have our orders, however, it is time for the story to begin, so if you would please give the book to Rachael so that we may start?"

She pointed to the girl on the end and the shocked goddess of wisdom handed it to her without thinking, a first for her.

Taking the book, the girl bowed and then introduced herself, smiling shyly at Apollo while she spoke:

"My name is Rachael Dare, I'm mortal, but I'm the new host for the spirit of Delphi, so I guess that makes me the new oracle…"

"Whoop, my new oracle is HOT!"

Rachael blushed bright red, but returned to her seat as did the Olympians. Once they were all seated, she began:

**I Accidentally Vaporize My Pre – Algebra Teacher**

Rachael cut herself off giggling. "Trust Percy to come out with that!"

"Man, I wish we had thought of that, it would have been so cool." One of the boys who had spoken earlier whispered to the other while Hermes shouted out.

"I want to vaporize _my_ pre-algebra teacher!"

This got him a frosty look from both Athena and the girl who had spoken to Zeus earlier, the one who sat under the owl symbol that continued to softly glow above her head, his eyes widened in understanding just as his sister spoke in a voice harder than iron: "Hermes, _I _am you pre- algebra teacher, or did you forget that?"

"I wish I could!" This comment earned him another glare, but sensing the oncoming fight, Rachael read on.

**Look, I didn't want to be a half-blood.**

"None of us did Prissy, get over it!" The girl that spoke sat under the symbol for Ares, and her… unpleasant features spoke of her heritage. However, it seemed that all the others around her agreed with her comment, further proving to Hermes that he was right, these were all demi-gods.

**If you're reading this because you think you might be one, my advice is: close this book right now. Believe whatever lie your mom or dad told you about your birth, and try to lead a normal life.**

"Although that wouldn't actually work Percy!" The girl under the owl spoke again, this time she had a sad look on her face and the girl in the other side of the empty chair throwed her a worried look.

**Being a half – blood is dangerous.**

"No shit Sherlock" The boy who sat under the eagle, rolled his blue eyes at this comment, but he was ignored by his peers.

**It's scary.** **Most of the time, it gets you killed in painful, nasty ways.**

Three of the children, along with most of the gods, flinched at this, after all, it was true!

**If you're a normal kid, reading this because you think it's fiction, great. Read on. I envy you for being able to believe that none of this ever happened.**

"So do we." Muttered the boy with the pale skin. All the others around him nodded their agreement and the gods looked at them in wonder at this comment. Athena's look was thoughtful as she kept her eyes on the girl from before, the gears in her head beginning to turn.

**But if you recognize yourself in these pages―if you feel something stirring inside―stop reading immediately. You might be one of us. And once you know that, it's only a matter of time before they sense it too, and they'll come for you.** **Don't say I didn't warn you.**

"ooh, a warning, this must be good! Must be some action waiting later on!" The god of war, Ares, leaned back in his chair with a gleeful expression on his face. He did not hear the threatening growl that came from Poseidon's direction.

**My name is Percy Jackson.**

"wow, you never would have guessed!" The girl under the banner of Artemis rolled her eyes at this, but she had a fond smile on her face. This served to pique Aphrodite's interest and she straitened a little in her chair… perhaps something was going on here?

**I'm twelve years old. Until a few months ago, I was a boarding student at Yancy Academy, a private school for troubled kids in upstate New York.**

**Am I a troubled kid?**

"Yes" the children chorused, grinning at each other in a way that made it look as though they knew him.

"All half bloods are." Pointed out Hera in a sharp voice, she had no love for godlings.

"We know that lady Hera, it's just that Percy is…" The girl under the dove trailed off, as though she was at a loss for the right words. Never mind, the "twins" from earlier decided to help her out:

"A magnet for trouble?"

"Worse than the rest of us?"

"Yeah, both of those!"

**Yeah. You could say that.**

"See, even Percy agrees!"

Hera scowled and Poseidon grew paler.

**I could start at any point in my short miserable life to prove it, but things really started going bad last May, when our grade six class took a field trip to Manhattan- twenty-eight-mental-case kids and two teachers on a yellow school bus, heading for the Metropolitan Museum of Art to look at ancient Greek and Roman stuff.**

"Sounds like my kind of party!" Joked Apollo, thoroughly enjoying himself imagining what came next.

"Yeah," Agreed Hermes, his ponderings forgotten, "Lots of chances for pranks!"

The two boys from earlier grinned, Poseidon groaned: "Sounds like torture to me!"

This caused the narrator to burst into a fit of giggles which she quickly explained by reading on.

**I know- it sounds like torture.**

Many of the gods chuckled at this, Poseidon looked pleased.

**But Mr. Brunner, our Latin teacher was leading this trip, so I had high hopes.**

**Mr Brunner was this middle aged guy in a motorized wheelchair. He had thinning hair and a scruffy beard and a frayed tweed jacket, which always smelled like coffee.**

"That sounds like Chiron!" Dionysus claimed sitting up a little straighter, but he kept his suspicions to himself, if Chiron had taken the time to go there, that meant…

**You wouldn't think he was cool, but he told stories and jokes and would let us play games in class. He also had this awesome collection of Roman armor and weapons, so he was the only teacher whose class didn't put me to sleep.**

"Ooh sounds like a teacher I would finally get along with!"

Apollo chuckled at Hermes' comment, Athena just scowled.

**I hoped the trip would be ok. At least, I hoped for once I wouldn't get in trouble.**

"Now that's just begging for trouble!" Whined the sun god.

**Boy was I wrong.**

"See!"

"No one corrected you Apollo!" Poseidon snapped angrily at his favorite nephew who had the sense to stop talking for a while.

**See, bad things happen to me on field trips. Like at my fifth-grade school, when we went to the Saratoga battlefield, I had this accident with a Revolutionary War cannon. I wasn't aiming for the school bus but of course, I got expelled anyway.**

Ares roared with laughter, "Now this is my kind of kid! Whose is he?"

The demi-gods all smiled at this while the Olympians muttered amongst themselves, only the gray eyed girl noticed that Poseidon stayed quiet. There were a few scattered chuckles

**And before that, at my fourth-grade school when we took a behind-the-scenes tour of the Marine World shark pool, I sort of hit the wrong lever on the catwalk and our class took an unplanned swim.**

Laughter broke out in earnest now, not just from the children, but the whole throne room, minus perhaps Athena and Hera, but then, they were just boring old stick-in-the-muds without any sense of humor, almost as bad as teachers.

**And the time before that... Well, you get the idea.**

"Seriously Percy, how did you survive before camp half-blood?" This comment, of course, set of the laughter again, causing Apollo and Hermes to actually ROFL. Artemis looked at her twin with disgust, but even she was smiling.

**This trip, I was determined to be good.**

"Which, in Percy language, means that something bad is going to happen!" The boy with the pale skin noted with a nod, grinning in expectation.

**All the way into the city I put up with Nancy Bobofit, the freckly, redheaded kleptomaniac girl, hitting my best friend Grover in the back of the head with chinks of peanut butter-and-ketchup sandwich.**

"Eeeeeeeew!" The girly squeal came from … you guessed it, Aphrodite shuddered delicately in horror. The girl under her dove glared at her in disgust.

**Grover was an easy target.****He was scrawny. He cried when he got frustrated. He must've been held back several grades, because he was the only sixth grader with acne and the start of a wispy beard on his chin. On top of all that, he was crippled. He had a note excusing him from PE for the rest of his life because he had some kind of muscular disease in his legs.**

"That sounds like a satyr, I hope that boy will be alright!" The worried voice of Hestia came from the fireplace and cut through the aura of gloom that had begun to surround Zeus. Yes, he knew this particular Satyr well he though, stroking the bolt thoughtfully. Seeing this, Rachael read on, fearing for her friend's life.

**He walked funny, like every step hurt him, but don't let that fool you. You should have seen him run when it was enchilada day in the cafeteria.**

"Stupid boy, he's going to give himself away like that!" Dionysus' tone was scathing, but his face showed he did not mean it. He was actually quite fond of the satyrs, even if he would never admit it.

**Anyway, Nancy Bobofit was throwing wads of sandwich that stuck in his curly brown hair, and she knew I couldn't do anything back to her cause I was already on probation. The headmaster threatened me with death by in-school suspension if anything bad, embarrassing, or even mildly entertaining happened on this trip.**

Hermes pouted, "That's no fun! Bring on the pranks!"

The "twins" from before nodded their agreement.

**"I'm going to kill her," I mumbled.**

"You should!" claimed Ares, as though it was common sense, the others looked at him strangely, worried for his sanity, not that he ever had any, but still…

**Grover tried to calm me down. "It's ok. I like peanut butter."**

Rachael cut herself off to mutter "Grover is so sweet!" before continuing reading.

**He dodged another piece of Nancy's lunch.**

"Nice reflexes for a goat!" Muttered the boy under the eagle. The dark haired girl beside him gave him a mock punch:

"Grover would kill you if he heard that!" They both grinned at each other. A sparkle lit up in Aphrodite's eye as she watched them.

**"That's it." I started to get up, but Grover pulled me back to my seat.**

**"You're already on probation," he reminded me. "You know who'll get blamed if anything happens."**

"Wise words!" Athena consented grudgingly.

**Looking back on it, I wish I'd decked Nancy Bobofit right then and there. In-school suspension would've been nothing compared to the mess I was about to get myself into.**

"Now that doesn't sound good!" Poseidon shifted forward in his throne almost unconsciously, unfortunately his worried tone was not lost on Athena and she gasped as the pieces began to fall into place.

**Mr. Brunner led the museum tour.**

**He rode up front in his wheelchair, guiding us through the big echoey galleries, past marble statues and glass cases full of really old black-and-orange pottery.**

**It blew my mind that this stuff had survived for two thousand, three thousand years.**

"Is this boy an idiot?" Athena muttered, distracted for a moment. Her comment earned her glares from 13 sets of eyes and again the wheels started turning.

**He gathered us around a thirteen-foot-tall stone column with a big sphinx on the top, and started telling us how it was a grave marker, a stele for a girl our age. HE told us about the carvings on the sides. I was trying to listen to what he had to say, because it was kind of interesting, but everyone around me was talking, and every time, I told them to shut up, the other teacher chaperone, Mrs. Dodds, would give me the evil eye.**

"Ugh. Not the evil eye, it scares me to death!" The boy with the black hair commented.

"Nico, you can't die remember?" The girl with the grey eyes commented.

"Oh yeah!"

Although the latter part of the conversation had been in whispers, Hades still heard them and he looked inquisitively at the boy, gasping as he recognized the face.

**Mrs. Dodds was this little math teacher from Georgia who always wore a black leather jacket, even though she was fifty years old. She looked mean enough to drive a Harley right into your locker. She had come to Yancy halfway through the year, when our last math teacher had a nervous breakdown.**

"Oh course she did, after teaching old seaweed brain for a few weeks, I nearly cried after the first day!"The girl with the grey eyes whispered to her friends who cracked up laughing.

**From her first day, Mrs. Dodds loved Nancy Bobfit and figured I was devil spawn. She would point her finger at me and say, "Now honey," real sweet and I knew I was going to get after-school detention for a month.**

Apollo flinched "Harsh!"

Athena glared at him without saying anything.

**One time, after she'd made me erase answers out of old math workbooks until midnight, I told Grover I didn't think Mrs. Dodds was human. He looked at me, real serious, and said, "You're absolutely right."**

"Way to keep a secret Grover!" mock cheered the boy named Nico, but then he noticed the expression on Hades' face and his eyes grew wide as he sat back down quickly.

**Mr. Brunner kept talking about the Greek funeral art.**

**Finally, Nancy Bobofit snickered something about the naked guy on the stele, and I turned around and said, "Will you shut up?"**

"What's the betting someone hears that?" Zeus muttered, you got the impression that he had been in that sort of situation before. Hera eyed her husband evilly, tying to figure out where…

**It came out louder than I meant it to.**

"It always does!" Groaned Hermes.

**The whole group laughed. Mr. Brunner stopped his story.**

**"Mr. Jackson," he said "did you have a comment?"**

**My face was totally red. I said "No, sir."**

"Wow, Prissy can be polite?" The girl under the Ares banner pretended to have a heart attack.

"Only when he has to be Clarisse!" The grey eyed girl called back good naturedly.

Ares' eyes narrowed, Clarisse, no wonder she looked familiar!

**Mr. Brunner pointed to one of the pictures on the stele.**

**"Perhaps you'll tell us what this picture represents?"**

**I looked at the carving and felt a flush of relief, because I actually recognized it. "That's Kronos eating his kids, right?"**

There was a collective groan from the older gods and goddesses.

"Why did it have to be that one? " Growled Hades, his head in his hands.

**"Yes," said obviously not satisfied. "And he did this because..."**

**"Well..." I racked my brain trying to remember. "Kronos was the king god, and-"**

Rachael stopped reading as Zeus electrified her, when he stopped she shuddered out a hissing breath.

"Dad, leave my oracle alone, she's only reading what's written!"

Zeus just glared at the book. "Father was NOT a God!"

Poseidon rolled his eyes, "Yes brother, I was under the impression that we all knew that, don't worry, the boy will be corrected!"

**"God?" Mr. Brunner asked.**

**"Titan," I corrected myself.**

"See?"

Zeus merely harrumphed.

**"And... he didn't trust his kids, who were the gods. So, um, Kronos ate them, right? But his wife hid baby Zeus and gave Kronos a rock to eat instead. And later, when Zeus grew up, he tricked his dad, Kronos, into barfing up his brothers and sisters-"**

Hera shuddered. "Worst day of my life!"

Hades looked at her incredulously. "What about the day you got in there the first time, or the day you got really excited that we were getting a baby brother and it turned out to be a rock?"

Hera scowled. Zeus grinned.

**"Eeew!" said one of the girls behind me.**

**"-and so there was this big fight between the gods and the Titans," I continued, "and the gods won."**

**Some snickers from the group.**

"Well, we would laugh too!"

"Yeah, leave it to Percy to turn one of _the_ most exciting events in history into something so _lame!"_ Surprise, surprise, the speakers were the two identical boys from earlier. Hermes watched them proudly, he had figured it out, the chairs that is…

**Behind me, Nancy Bobofit mumbled to a friend, "Like we're going to use this in real life. Like it's going to say on our job applications, 'Please explain why Kronos ate his kids.'"**

**"And why, Mr. Jackson," Brunner said, "to paraphrase Miss Bobofit's excellent question, does this matter in real life?"**

"Busted!" Laughed Clarisse.

**"Busted," Grover muttered.**

The rest of the half-bloods broke into a huge round of laughter, Clarisse glared at the floor sullenly, not happy that she had the same train of thought as a goat.

**"Shut up," Nancy hissed, her face even brighter red than her hair.**

**At least Nancy got packed, too. Mr. Brunner was the only one who every caught her saying anything wrong. He had radar ears.**

"Of course he did, he's a centaur not some stupid, ignorant human male!" Sniffed Artemis, the rest of the gods just rolled their eyes at her comment.

**I thought about his question, and shrugged. "I don't know, sir."**

"Well he _is _seaweed brain." The grey eyed girl muttered affectionately.

"Well, at least we all know he's not my son!" Claimed Athena.

**"I see," Mr Brunner looked disappointed. "Well, half credit, Mr. Jackson. Zeus did indeed feed Kronos a mixture of mustard and wine, which made him disgorge his other five children, who, of course being immortal gods, had been living and growing up completely undigested in the Titan's stomach.**

Demeter, Hera and Hestia all shuddered.

**The gods defeated their father, sliced him to pieces with his own scythe and scattered him remains in Tartarus, the darkest part of the Underworld. On that happy note, it's time for lunch. Mrs. Dodds, would you lead us back outside?"**

**The class drifted off, the girls holding their stomachs, the guys pushing each other around and acting like doofuses.**

Artemis sat up straight looking superior, again everyone just rolled their eyes.

**Grover and I were about to follow when Mr. Brunner said, "Mr. Jackson."**

"Not good to be called back by a teacher!" Said Apollo gravely, Hermes nodding solemnly by his side.

"Idiots!" Growled Athena.

**I knew what was coming.**

**I told Grover to keep going. Then I turned toward Mr. Brunner. "Sir?"**

**Mr. Brunner had this look that wouldn't let you go―intense brown eyes that could've been a thousand years old and had seen everything.**

"Older than that boy!" Zeus half laughed, trying to lift the tension, but then, the jokes of the sky god were worse than his temper, so it didn't really work.

**"You must learn the answer to my question," Mr. Brunner told me.**

**"About the Titans?"**

**"About real life. And how your studies apply to it."**

**"Oh."**

**"What you learn from me," he said," is vitally important. I expect you to treat it as such. I will accept only the best from you, Percy Jackson."**

**I wanted to get angry, this guy pushed me so hard.**

"He's a teacher, it's his job!" An indignant Athena burst out, of course, everyone ignored her.

**I mean, sure it was kind of cool on tournament days, when he dressed up in a suit of Roman armour and shouted: "What ho!" and challenged us, sword point against chalk, to run to the board and name every Greek and Roman person who ever lived, and their mother, and what god the worshipped.**

"Finally, a lesson I'd be good at!" Joked Apollo.

**But Mr. Brunner expected me to be as good as everybody else, despite the fact I have dyslexia and attention deficit disorder and I have never made above a C- in my life. No―he didn't want me to be as good he expected me to be better. And I just couldn't learn all those names and facts, much less spell them correctly.**

"That's because you're an idiot!" sniffed Athena.

Apollo looked at Hermes and then spoke in a woefully serious voice, "You wouldn't happen to have a tissue would you brother?"

"No, why do you ask?"

"Well it would appear that our _dear _sisters have caught a cold, what with all their sniffing!" The brothers fell on the floor laughing while the sisters were very much not amused.

**I mumbled something about trying harder, while Mr. Brunner took a long sad look at the stele, like he'd been at this girl's funeral.**

"I bet he was, and so was I!" Hades laughed darkly, he had always had a gallows humor, mores the pity for Persephone.

**He told me to go outside and eat my lunch.**

**The class gathered on the front steps of the museum, where we could watch the foot traffic along Fifth Avenue.**

**Overhead, a large storm was brewing, with clouds blacker than I'd ever seen over the city.**

Every single person in the room looked at Zeus who whistled and pretended he didn't notice them.

**I figured maybe it was Global warming or something, because the weather all across New York state had been weird since Christmas. We'd had massive snow storms, flooding, wildfires from lightning strikes. I wouldn't have been surprised if this was a hurricane blowing in.**

Now they included Poseidon in their glances, why were the two brothers fighting?

**Nobody else seemed to notice. Some of the guys were pelting pigeons with Lunchables crackers. Nancy Bobofit was trying to pickpocket something from a lady's purse, and, of course, Mrs. Dodds wasn't seeing a thing.**

"Obviously!" Muttered Nico darkly.

**Grover and I sat on the edge of the fountain, away from the others. We thought that maybe if we did that, everybody wouldn't know we were from that school―the school for loser freaks who couldn't make it elsewhere. "Detention?" Grover asked.**

**"Nah," I said "Not from Brunner. I wish he'd lay off me sometimes. I mean―I'm not a genius."**

**Grover didn't say anything for a while. Then, when I thought he was going to give me some deep philosophical comment to make me feel better, he said, "Can I have your apple?"**

Once again, the throne room filled with laughter.

**I didn't have much of an appetite, so I let him take it.**

"Typical Percy!" the grey eyed girl whispered with a gleam in her eye that Aphrodite did not miss.

**I watched the stream of cabs going down Fifth Avenue and thought about my mom's apartment, only a little ways uptown from where we sat. I hadn't seen her since Christmas. I wanted so bad to jump in a taxi and head for home. She'd hug me and be glad to see me, but she'd be disappointed, too. She'd send me right back to Yancy, remind me that I had to try harder, even if this was my sixth school in six years and I was probably going to get kicked out again. I wouldn't be able to stand that sad look she'd give me.**

"He's a good kid." Murmured Demeter grudgingly.

,Aphrodite was shocked to feel waves of love coming off of her uncle, that was when the pieces clicked into place for her and she let out a little gasp.

**Mr. Brunner parked his wheelchair at the base of the handicapped ramp. He ate celery while he read a paperback novel. A red umbrella stuck up from the back of his chair, making it look like a motorized cafe table.**

A few chuckles at this image.

**I was about to unwrap my sandwich when Nancy Bobofit appeared in front of me with her ugly friends―I guess she'd gotten tired of stealing from the tourists―and dumped her half-eaten lunch in Grover's lap.**

There were shocked gasps all around the room and the faces of the demi-gods hardened, they had never heard of this part!

**"Oops." She grinned at me with her crooked teeth. Her freckles were orange, as if somebody had spray-painted her face with liquid Cheetos.**

"That girl needs a makeover!" Aphrodite said more to herself than anyone.

"And cereal!" Agreed Demeter, though it wasn't anything like the same point as her niece's.

**I tried to stay cool. The school counsellor had told me a million times, "Count to ten, get control of your temper."**

"Doesn't work kid!" Confirmed Ares.

**But I was so mad my mind went blank. A wave roared in my ears.**

Zeus and Hades began glaring at their brother in outrage, Poseidon suddenly became very interested in the grip of his trident.

**`I don't remember touching her, but the next thing I knew, Nancy was sitting on her butt in the fountain, screaming, "Percy pushed me!"**

**Mrs. Dodds materialized next to us.**

**Some of the kids were whispering: "Did you see―"**

**"―the water―"**

"POSEIDON!" Roared Zeus, and the entire earth felt his wrath, however, before the gods of the sky and the underworld could attack the god of the sea, they felt hands on their shoulders, pushing them down into their seats. In front of Zeus stood the girl with electric blue eyes, and in front of Hades stood Nico. Understanding the message from his son, the eldest of the brothers returned to his seat, Zeus followed suit glaring at the girl who seemed vaguely familiar… The demi-gods returned to their seats.

**"―like it grabbed her―"**

**I didn't know what they were talking about. All I knew was that I was in trouble again.**

**As soon as Mrs. Dodds was sure poor little Nancy was okay, promising to get her a new shirt at the museum gift shop, etc., etc., Mrs. Dodds turned on me. There was a triumphant fire in her eyes, as if I'd done something she'd been waiting for all semester. "Now, honey―"**

**"I know," I grumbled. "A month erasing workbooks."**

One of the "twins" flinched "Ugh, never guess your punishment!"

"You sound like you're talking from experience Connor!"

"I am Annabeth!"

Annabeth? Athena's eyes widened.

**That wasn't the right thing to say.**

"it never is somehow." Sighed the other boy.

**"Come with me," Mrs. Dodds said.**

**"Wait!" Grover yelped. "It was me. I pushed her."**

**I stared at him, stunned. I couldn't believe he was trying to cover for me. Mrs. Dodds scared Grover to death.**

**She glared at him so hard his whiskery chin trembled.**

**"I don't think so, Mr. Underwood," she said.**

**"But―"**

**"You―will―stay―here."**

**Grover looked at me desperately.**

**"It's okay, man," I told him. "Thanks for trying."**

"No no no no no no no no, don't go with her son!" The outburst from Poseidon was unexpected to say the least, making many people jump.

"so you admit that he is yours then _brother._" Zeus spat out. Poseidon ignored him, to worried about his son to care.

**"Honey," Mrs. Dodds barked at me. "Now."**

**Nancy Bobofit smirked.**

**I gave her my deluxe I'll-kill-you-later stare.**

"Knowing Percy her probably will." Sighed the girl under the dove.

**Then I turned to face Mrs. Dodds, but she wasn't there. She was standing at the museum entrance, way at the top of the steps, gesturing impatiently at me to come on.**

**How'd she get there so fast?**

Poseidon went pale and his face locked in the expression of realization for a second, but then he started glaring daggers at Hades who began to play innocent. Zeus, of course, was oblivious.

**I have moments like that a lot, when my brain falls asleep or something, and the next thing I know I've missed something, as if a puzzle piece fell out of the universe and left me staring at the blank place behind it. The school counselor told me this was part of the ADHD, my brain misinterpreting things.**

**I wasn't so sure.**

**I went after Mrs. Dodds.**

"Idiot!" Exclaimed Athena again, but even she was sitting forward now. Ares' face lit up in expectation.

**Halfway up the steps, I glanced back at Grover. He was looking pale, cutting his eyes between me and Mr. Brunner, like he wanted Mr. Brunner to notice what was going on, but Mr. Brunner was absorbed in his novel.**

"Not good!" Sighed Annabeth.

**I looked back up. Mrs. Dodds had disappeared again. She was now inside the building, at the end of the entrance hall.**

**Okay, I thought. She's going to make me buy a new shirt for Nancy at the gift shop.**

**But apparently that wasn't the plan.**

"Of course not!" Claimed Hermes, flinching as he imagined what was coming next.

**I followed her deeper into the museum. When I finally caught up to her, we were back in the Greek and Roman section.**

**Except for us, the gallery was empty.**

Nico shuddered, "No back up!"

**Mrs. Dodds stood with her arms crossed in front of a big marble frieze of the Greek gods. She was making this weird noise in her throat, like growling. Even without the noise, I would've been nervous. It's weird being alone with a teacher, especially Mrs. Dodds. Something about the way she looked at the frieze, as if she wanted to pulverize it...**

"Knowing her, she did." Reasoned Hades in a weary voice, almost as though he had had this conversation before… many times.

**"You've been giving us problems, honey," she said.**

"Us?" hissed Poseidon, his killing aura growing, again Hades played innocent.

**I did the safe thing. I said, "Yes, ma'am."**

**She tugged on the cuffs of her leather jacket. "Did you really think you would get away with it?"**

**The look in her eyes was beyond mad. It was evil.**

**She's a teacher, I thought nervously. It's not like she's going to hurt me.**

Everyone in the room (bar Hera and Ares) laughed once without humor, Poseidon winced

**I said, "I'll―I'll try harder, ma'am."**

**Thunder shook the building.**

Zeus laughed, "Looks like I'm angry!"

Apollo looked at his father in shock, shaking his head in disbelief, "you realize this _now_?"

**"We are not fools, Percy Jackson," Mrs. Dodds said. "It was only a matter of time before we found you out. Confess, and you will suffer less pain."**

**I didn't know what she was talking about.**

**All I could think of was that the teachers must've found the illegal stash of candy I'd been selling out of my dorm room.**

Some tense laughter.

**Or maybe they'd realized I got my essay on Tom Sawyer from the Internet without ever reading the book and now they were going to take away my grade. Or worse, they were going to make me read the book.**

"He's an absolute idiot!" Exclaimed Athena!

"No, he's _dyslexic_!" Annabeth chided, Athena looked shocked.

**"Well?" she demanded.**

**"Ma'am, I don't..."**

**"Your time is up," she hissed.**

**Then the weirdest thing happened. Her eyes began to glow like barbecue coals. Her fingers stretched, turning into talons. Her jacket melted into large, leathery wings. She wasn't human. She was a shriveled hag with bat wings and claws and a mouth full of yellow fangs, and she was about to slice me to ribbons.**

A dangerous, deadly growl coming from the sea god made everyone jump, especially Hades, but that was before he was pinned up against the wall, being choked.

"You sent a _fury _after my _12 _year old son?"

"Thalia was only 12, and look what he sent after her!" Exclaimed Zeus. The girl with the blue eyes and black hair, who sat under the banner of Artemis flinched, Hades just shrugged. Eager to break up the spat, Rachael carried on reading.

**Then things got even stranger.**

"How do things get stranger than that?" Queried Annabeth as the 3 brothers regained their seats.

"Percy!" Nico said, in way of explination.

**Mr. Brunner, who'd been out in front of the museum a minute before, wheeled his chair into the doorway of the gallery, holding a pen in his hand.**

**"What ho, Percy!" he shouted, and tossed the pen through the air.**

**Mrs. Dodds lunged at me. With a yelp, I dodged and felt talons slash the air next to my ear. I snatched the ballpoint pen out of the air, but when it hit my hand, it wasn't a pen anymore. It was a sword―Mr. Brunner's bronze sword, which he always used on tournament day.**

Poseidon grinned.

**Mrs. Dodds spun toward me with a murderous look in her eyes.**

**My knees were jelly. My hands were shaking so bad I almost dropped the sword.**

**She snarled, "Die, honey!"**

"Hades, what's with the honey?" Hestia asked mildly, again Hades just shrugged, he did not control his servants to that extent, no matter how much he wished that he _could._

**And she flew straight at me.**

**Absolute terror ran through my body. I did the only thing that came naturally: I swung the sword.**

"What part of that is natural?" Asked Rachael, cutting herself off again, but she resumed reading before anyone could answer, she did not like the look in Clarisse's eye.

**The metal blade hit her shoulder and passed clean through her body as if she were made of water. Hisss!**

"Got to love Percy's sound effects!" claimed the girl under Demeter's symbol, it was the first time she had spoken, but the tension in the room was palpable.

"He. Just. Killed. My Fury!"

"On his first try as well!" gloated Poseidon, proud now that he had got over his fear for his son's life.

**Mrs. Dodds was a sand castle in a power fan.**

"aww, he's connecting himself to his father, how sweet!" cooed Aphrodite. Everyone else just ignored her.

**She exploded into yellow powder, vaporized on the spot, leaving nothing but the smell of sulfur and a dying screech and a chill of evil in the air, as if those two glowing red eyes were still watching me.**

**I was alone.**

**There was a ballpoint pen in my hand.**

"I love the mist." Sang Apollo, then he looked over at Rachael and added "And I love my HOT new Oracle!"

Rachael whent bright red but carried on reading.

**Mr. Brunner wasn't there. Nobody was there but me.**

**My hands were still trembling. My lunch must've been contaminated with magic mushrooms or something.**

Nico laughed "Only Percy could come up with that explanation!"

**Had I imagined the whole thing?**

**I went back outside. It had started to rain.**

**Grover was sitting by the fountain, a museum map tented over his head. Nancy Bobofit was still standing there, soaked from her swim in the fountain, grumbling to her ugly friends. When she saw me, she said, "I hope Mrs. Kerr whipped your butt."**

**I said, "Who?"**

**"Our teacher. Duh!"**

**I blinked. We had no teacher named Mrs. Kerr. I asked Nancy what she was talking about.**

**She just rolled her eyes and turned away.**

**I asked Grover where Mrs. Dodds was.**

**He said, "Who?"**

**But he paused first, and he wouldn't look at me, so I thought he was messing with me.**

Connor groaned, "why is it so hard for you to lie Grover?"

Hermes looked at the two of them where they sat side by side, "Travis, Connorm you better fix that!"

"Yes dad!" They chorused, the other gods looked at them in shock.

**"Not funny, man," I told him. "This is serious."**

**Thunder boomed overhead and I saw Mr. Brunner sitting under his red umbrella, reading his book, as if he'd never moved.**

**I went over to him.**

**He looked up, a little distracted. "Ah, that would be my pen. Please bring your own writing utensil in the future, Mr. Jackson."**

**I handed Mr. Brunner his pen. I hadn't even realized I was still holding it.**

**"Sir," I said, "where's Mrs. Dodds?"**

**He stared at me blankly. "Who?"**

**"The other chaperone. Mrs. Dodds. The pre-algebra teacher."**

"Ahh Chiron" Sighed Travis

"The lying _master_!" Finished Connor happily.

**He frowned and sat forward, looking mildly concerned. "Percy, there is no Mrs. Dodds on this trip. As far as I know, there has never been a Mrs. Dodds at Yancy Academy. Are you feeling all right?"**

And the whole room filled with laughter again. Rachael looked up, "That's the end of the chapter, do you want to continue?"

There was a chorus of "yes" from the gods apart from Dionysus who had fallen asleep in his chair. Without another word, Rachael passed the book on to the boy who sat beside her, he stood, bowed and introduced himself "I'm Leo Valdez, a son of Hephaestus." Then he sat down, but before he could read anything, there was a bright flash around the one empty chair left in the room, the one with the glowing green trident.


	3. Three Old Ladies Knit the Socks of Death

**Disclaimer: Again, I do not own Percy Jackson, no matter how much I may wish that I did.**

**A big thanks to:**

Alex Rider's Spygirl

Drew1969

IcyRose66

Im-In-Love-With-PJO

Just-AWESOME-old-me

MaxandThalia

Midnight Alwas

Mousefur98

Sol Swan Cullen

heartdraconis19361

smenkus1

tinkerbell427

ArayaJasmine

Katlover98

**And everyone else reading this. You guys are amazing!**

The inhabitants of the Olympus throne room, all crowded round to try to get a glimpse of the new arrival, but the smoke was too thick. Before it had even begun to clear, another scrap of paper fell from the sky and landed on the lap of the girl named Annabeth. Chocking slightly on the smoke, she picked it up, but as she read, her face fell and she passed it on to the girl who sat on the other side of the smoking area, not wanting to read it aloud. The other girl cringed as she read the words.

Impatient to hear what his future self had said, (as well as being completely oblivious to the distress of the two demi-gods) Apollo stopped bouncing on his chair long enough to ask "well, what does it say?"

Without further ado, the girl read out

_A little note for all the past Olympians, it seems like our little hero is a tiny bit busy right at this moment so you might have to wait for a liiiitle bit late to the party. However, just to appease the daughter of Athena (and give her something to cuddle when she gets nervous) we have sent a little toy in his place! _

_Sorry for all the confusion, _

_Hermes_

The second she stopped talking, the smoke finally began to clear, allowing the 25 sets of intrigued eyes a clear view of the chair and its new occupant… a _dolphin _teddy? Annabeth glowered at it, but still picked it up and hugged it close. It smelled of the sea, just like her boyfriend, it calmed her a little. Athena looked at her daughter worriedly, trying to figure out why she would be the one that the dolphin was meant for, what was going on between her precious child and the son of tat sea rat? All the other demi-gods either laughed or looked at their friend worriedly. It had been several months since they had last seen Percy, and this was beginning to have an effect on her. The gods all had mixed looks of surprise, only Poseidon had a differing look, he just leaned back in his throne with a air of disappointment. He had really wanted to see his son again.

To cover up the awkward silence, Leo began reading.

"**Three Old Ladies Knit the Socks of Death,"**

"That really doesn't sound too good!" The whimper came from the sea gods chair, but for once, no one had the heart to make fun of his distress, Most of them had figured out this chapter. Annabeth paled.

**I was used to the occasional weird experience, but usually they were over quickly.**

**This twenty-four/seven hallucination was more than I could handle. For the rest of the school year, the entire campus seemed to be playing some kind of trick on me. The****students acted as if they were completely and totally convinced that Mrs. Kerr—a perky blond woman whom I'd never seen in my life until she got on our bus at the end of the field trip—had been our pre-algebra teacher since Christmas.**

**Every so often I would spring a Mrs. Dodds reference on somebody, just to see if I could trip them up, but they would stare at me like I was psycho.**

"You mean the Percy look?" Joked Nico, trying to break the tension. Needless to say, it didn't work.

**It got so I almost believed them—Mrs. Dodds had never existed.**

**Almost.**

**But Grover couldn't fool me.**

"Boys!" Hermes stated, looking at the "twins" who nodded back at him gravely

"On it dad!"

**When I mentioned the name Dodds to him, he would hesitate, and then claim she didn't exist. But I knew he was lying.**

**Something was going on. Something**_**had**___**happened at the museum.**

"Well nooo!" Muttered Clarisse, earning a death glare from Annabeth and a soaking from Poseidon.

**I didn't have much time to think about it during the days, but at night, visions of Mrs. Dodds with talons and leathery wings would wake me up in a cold sweat.**

"Well she _is _terrifying!" Stated the girl with the blue eyes. Zeus looked at her as though he was trying to figure something out. Hades just looked proud.

**The freak weather continued, which didn't help my mood. One night, a thunderstorm blew out****the windows** **in my dorm room. **

"w-what?" Spluttered Zeus who had just been treated to an unexpected shower. Poseidon just whistled and looked innocently at Leo, gesturing for him to carry on reading.

**A few days later, the biggest tornado ever spotted in the Hudson Valley touched down only fifty miles from Yancy Academy. One of the current events we studied in social studies class was the unusual number of small planes that had gone down in sudden squalls in the Atlantic that year.**

Everyone glared at the two brothers who burst out laughing like little children.

**I started feeling cranky and irritable most of the time. My grades slipped from D's to F's.**

"Idiot!" Hissed Athena, before she too had an icy embrace with half of the atlantic ocean.

**I got into more fights with Nancy Bobofit and her friends. I was sent out into the hallway in almost every class.**

Ares snickered at this, "I like this kid!"

**Finally, when our English teacher, Mr. Nicoll, asked me for the millionth time why I was too lazy to study for spelling tests, I snapped. I called him an old sot. I wasn't even sure what it meant, but it sounded good.**

**The headmaster sent my mom a letter the following week, making it official: I would not be invited back next year to Yancy Academy.**

**Fine, I told myself. Just fine.**

**I was homesick.**

Hera and Demeter cooed at this. Aphrodite snickered.

**I wanted to be with my mom in our little apartment on the Upper East Side, even if I had to go to public school and put up with my obnoxious stepfather and his stupid poker parties.**

The whole room shuddered as Poseidon growled.

**And yet... there were things I'd miss at Yancy. The view** **of the woods outside my dorm window, the Hudson River in the distance, the smell of pine trees. I'd miss Grover, who'd been a good friend,** **even if he was a little strange.**

**I worried how he'd survive next year without me.**

"Not that he will be there if you're not moron!" Chuckled Dionysus.

"Don't mock the child boy! He is being a good friend!" to everyone's surprise, it was the goddess of marriage who chided her son. As a rule, she did not approve of the illegitimate children of her family.

**I'd miss Latin class, too—Mr. Brunner's crazy tournament days and his faith that I could do well.**

**As exam week got closer, Latin was the only test I studied for.**

"WHAT!" The indignant gasp came from the goddess of wisdom, she just couldn't imagine _not _studying for a test.

**I hadn't forgotten what Mr. Brunner had told me about this subject being life-and-death for me. I wasn't sure why, but I'd started to believe him.**

**The evening before my final, I got so frustrated I threw the**_**Cambridge Guide to Greek Mythology**___**across my dorm room.**

Again, it looked like Athena was about to protest the mistreatment of the book, but without warning, she felt something brush against her arm and when she looked down, the spear of water scared her into silence.

**Words had started swimming off the page, circling my head, the letters doing one-eighties as if they were riding skateboards. There was no way I was going to remember the difference between Chiron and Charon,**

Hades laughed at this, the others looked at him, doubting his sanity.

**or Polydictes and Polydeuces. And conjugating those Latin verbs? Forget it.**

"Yes, go kid!" Apollo cheered while Hermes nodded by his side.

Zeus glowered, "You do know that you just said that in Latin, don't you Apollo?"

**I paced the room, feeling like ants were crawling around inside my shirt.**

**I remembered Mr. Brunner's serious expression, his thousand-year-old eyes.**_**I will accept only the best from you, Percy Jackson.**_

**I took a deep breath. I picked up the mythology book.**

**I'd never asked a teacher for help before.**

"Then why are you breaking that streak now?" Shrieked an indignant Hermes, while his sons grinned at each other. They both LOVED their dad

**Maybe if I talked to Mr. Brunner, he could give me some pointers. At least I could apologize for the big fat F I was about to score on his exam. I didn't want to leave Yancy Academy with him thinking I hadn't tried.**

"And here comes Percy's sweet side!" Sighed Annabeth dreamily.

**I walked downstairs to the faculty offices. Most of them were dark and empty, but Mr. Brunner's door was ajar, light from his window stretching across the hallway floor.**

**I was three steps from the door handle when I heard voices inside the office. Mr. Brunner asked a question. A voice that was definitely Grover's said,**

_**"...**_ **worried about Percy, sir."**

**I froze.**

"Yes you have to stay quiet when snooping!" Stated travis, while his dad looked at him with pride.

**I'm not usually an eavesdropper,** **but I dare you to try not listening if you hear your best friend talking about you to an adult.**

**I inched closer.**

**"... alone this summer," Grover was saying. "I mean, a Kindly One in the**_**school**_**! Now that we know for sure, and**_**they**___**know too—"**

**"We would only make matters worse by rushing him," Mr. Brunner said. "We need the boy to mature more."**

**"But he may not have time. The summer solstice dead line—**_**"**_

"The what?" Hephaestus queried his son, who just shrugged and continued reading in answer.

**"Will have to be resolved without him, Grover. Let him enjoy his ignorance while he still can."**

**"Sir, he**_**saw**___**her... ."**

**"His imagination," Mr. Brunner insisted. "The Mist over the students and staff will be enough to convince him of that."**

**"Sir, I ... I can't fail in my duties again."**

"He should NOT have been even GIVEN another assignment!" Yelled Zeus.

"Oh will you SHUT UP DAD!" Yelled the girl with blue eyes.

Zeus looked at her in shock. "Thalia?"

"Read Leo!"

**Grover's voice was choked with emotion. "You know what that would mean."**

**"You haven't failed, Grover," Mr. Brunner said kindly. "I should have seen her for what she was. Now let's just worry about keeping Percy alive until next fall—"**

"Well that sounds pleasant!" Cheered Apollo.

**The mythology book dropped out of my hand and hit the floor with a thud.**

"NO NEVER GIVE AWAY YOUR POSITION!" Hermes screeched.

**Mr. Brunner went silent.**

**My heart hammering, I picked up the book and backed down the hall.**

**A shadow slid across the lighted glass of Brunner's office door, the shadow of something much taller than my wheelchair-bound teacher, holding something that looked suspiciously like an archer's bow.**

**I opened the nearest door and slipped inside.**

**A few seconds later I heard a slow**_**clop-clop-clop,**___**like muffled wood blocks, then a sound like an animal snuffling right outside my door. A large, dark shape paused in front of the glass, and then moved on.**

**A bead of sweat trickled down my neck.**

**Somewhere in the hallway, Mr. Brunner spoke. "Nothing," he murmured. "My nerves haven't been right since the winter solstice."**

"Again, what's with the solstices?" Aphrodite picked up on her husband's prior statement.

**"Mine neither," Grover said. "But I could have sworn ..."**

**"Go back to the dorm," Mr. Brunner told him. "You've got a long day of exams tomorrow."**

**"Don't remind me."**

**The lights went out in Mr. Brunner's office.**

**I waited in the dark for what seemed like forever.**

**Finally, I slipped out into the hallway and made my way back up to the dorm.**

**Grover was lying on his bed, studying his Latin exam notes like he'd been there all night.**

**"Hey," he said, bleary-eyed. "You going to be ready for this test?"**

**I didn't answer.**

**"You look awful." He frowned. "Is everything okay?"**

**"Just... tired."**

**I turned so he couldn't read my expression,**

"Not gonna work, e can read your emotions kid!" Cackled Ares.

**and started getting ready for bed.**

**I didn't understand what I'd heard downstairs. I wanted to believe I'd imagined the whole thing.**

**But one thing was clear: Grover and Mr. Brunner were talking about me behind my back. They thought I was in some kind of danger.**

**The next afternoon, as I was leaving the three-hour Latin exam,**

Everyone in the room flinched.

**my eyes swimming with all the Greek and Roman names I'd misspelled, Mr. Brunner called me back inside.**

**For a moment, I was worried he'd found out about my eavesdropping the night before, but that didn't seem to be the problem.**

**"Percy," he said. "Don't be discouraged about leaving Yancy. It's ... it's for the best."**

"What are you thinking of saying to my SON Chiron?" Demanded Poseidon. Instead of bristling at this, Zeus just continued to stare at the girl who sat under the symbol of Artemis, almost as though he feared that she would soon disappear.

**His tone was kind, but the words still embarrassed me. Even though he was speaking quietly, the other kids finishing the test could hear. Nancy Bobofit smirked at me and made sarcastic little kissing motions with her lips.**

"Ooh I am SO going to mess with that girl's love life! No mortal is gonna mess with my baby cousin!" Everyone around the room looked at Aphrodite in shock, did she just stand up for a son of Poseidon?

**I mumbled, "Okay, sir."**

**"I mean ..." Mr. Brunner wheeled his chair back and forth, like he wasn't sure what to say. "This isn't the right place for you. It was only a matter of time."**

**My eyes stung.**

"Prissy is a wimp!" Sang Clarisse, but the threatening look from the sea god soon silenced her.

**Here was my favorite teacher, in front of the class, telling me I couldn't handle it. After saying he believed in me all year, now he was telling me I was destined to get kicked out.**

**"Right," I said, trembling.**

**"No, no," Mr. Brunner said. "Oh, confound it all. What I'm trying to say ... you're not normal, Percy. That's nothing to be—"**

**"Thanks," I blurted. "Thanks a lot, sir, for reminding me."**

**"Percy—"**

**But I was already gone.**

"Aw the poor kid!" Sighed Hestia while her brother fumed in the corner.

**On the last day of the term, I shoved my clothes into my suitcase.**

**The other guys were joking around, talking about their vacation plans. One of them was going on a hiking trip to Switzerland. Another was cruising the Caribbean for a month. They were juvenile delinquents, like me, but they were**_**rich**___**juvenile delinquents. Their daddies were executives, or ambassadors, or celebrities. I was a nobody, from a family of nobodies.**

**They asked me what I'd be doing this summer and I told them I was going back to the city.**

**What I didn't tell them was that I'd have to get a summer job walking dogs or selling magazine subscriptions, and spend my free time worrying about where I'd go to school in the fall.**

"Come ON Sally, let me help you, even just a little!" whined Poseidon, looking like a small kid. All the demi-gods looked at each other sadly. It was well known that the god of the seas was a kinder parent to his son that most other gods were, but they still couldn't help feeling a little bit jealous.

**"Oh," one of the guys said. "That's cool."**

**They went back to their conversation as if I'd never existed.**

**The only person I dreaded saying good-bye to was Grover, but as it turned out, I didn't have to. He'd booked a ticket to Manhattan on the same Greyhound as I had,**

"Great." Glowered Dionysus, "I guess I'm going to have to set that up too!"

"Not necessarily!" Chided Hera, before waving at Leo to read again.

**so there we were, together again, heading into the city.**

**During the whole bus ride, Grover kept glancing nervously down the aisle, watching the other passengers. It occurred to me that he'd always acted nervous and fidgety when we left Yancy, as if he expected something bad to happen.**

"That's because he _did!"_ Called out Ares gleefully.

**Before, I'd always assumed he was worried about getting teased. But there was nobody to tease him on the Greyhound.**

**Finally I couldn't stand it anymore.**

**I said, "Looking for Kindly Ones?"**

Everyone in the room laughed. "Way to give the Satyr a heart attack!" Cheered Travis.

**Grover nearly jumped out of his seat. "Wha—what do you mean?"**

**I confessed about eavesdropping on him and Mr. Brunner the night before the exam.**

"Noooo! Never confess!" Cried his brother.

**Grover's eye twitched. "How much**_**did**___**you hear?"**

**"Oh ... not much. What's the summer solstice dead-line?"**

**He winced. "Look, Percy ... I was just worried for you, see? I mean, hallucinating about demon math teachers …"**

**"Grover—"**

**"And I was telling Mr. Brunner that maybe you were overstressed or something, because there was no such person as Mrs. Dodds, and ..."**

**"Grover, you're a really, really bad liar."**

Before the god of thieves could even open his mouth, the wtwins once again stated in harmony "We're on it!"

**His ears turned pink.**

**From his shirt pocket, he fished out a grubby business card. "Just take this, okay? In case you need me this summer.**

**The card was in fancy script, which was murder on my dyslexic eyes, but I finally made out something like:**

_**Grover Underwood**_

_**Keeper**_

_**Half-Blood Hill**_

_**Long Island, New York**_

_**(800)**_ _**009-0009**_

"Wow!" Breathed Annabeth, snuggling with the teddy. "I couldn't make either heads nor tails out of that card the first time I saw it!"

**"What's Half—"**

**"Don't say it aloud!" he yelped. "That's my, um ... summer address."**

**My heart sank. Grover had a summer home. I'd never considered that his family might be as rich as the others at Yancy.**

**"Okay," I said glumly. "So, like, if I want to come visit your mansion."**

**He nodded. "Or...or if you need me."**

**"Why would I need you?"**

"That boy needs some cereal, it will make him kinder!" Nodded Demeter to herself, making a mental note.

**It came out harsher than I meant it to.**

**Grover blushed right down to his Adam's apple. "Look, Percy, the truth is, I—I kind of have to protect you."**

**I stared at him.**

**All year long, I'd gotten in fights, keeping bullies away from him. I'd lost sleep worrying that he'd get beaten up next year without me.**

"Well, maybe not all that much more." She amended quickly.

**And here he was acting like he was the one who defended**_**me.**_

**"Grover," I said, "What exactly are you protecting me from?"**

**There was a huge grinding noise under our feet. Black smoke poured from the dashboard and the whole bus filled with a smell like rotten eggs.**

"Again, not good!" Mumbled Poseidon to himself.

**The driver cursed and steered the Greyhound over to the side of the highway.**

**After a few minutes clanking around in the engine compartment, the driver announced that we'd all have to get off. Grover and I filed outside with everybody else.**

**We were on a stretch of country road—no place you'd n otice if you didn't break down there. On our side of the highway was nothing but maple trees and litter from passing cars. On the other side, across four lanes of asphalt shimmering with afternoon heat, was an old-fashioned fruit stand.**

"He should get some, all growing boys need fruit!" Stated Demeter

**The stuff on sale looked really good: heaping boxes of blood red cherries and apples, walnuts and apricots, jugs of cider in a claw-foot tub full of ice**_**.**___**There were no customers, just three old ladies sitting in rocking chairs in the shade of a maple tree, knitting the biggest pair of socks I'd ever seen.**

All the gods in the room froze.

**I mean these socks were the size of sweaters, but they were clearly socks. The lady on the right knitted one of them. The lady on the left knitted the other. The lady in the middle held an enormous basket of electric-blue yarn.**

**All three women looked ancient, with pale faces wrinkled like fruit leather, silver hair tied back in white bandannas, bony arms sticking out of bleached cotton dresses.**

**The weirdest thing was, they seemed to be looking right at me.**

Poseidon whimpered.

**I looked over at Grover to say something about this and saw that the blood had drained from his face. His nose was twitching.**

**"Grover?" I said. "Hey, man—"**

**"Tell me they're not looking at you. They are, aren't they?"**

**"Yeah. Weird, huh? You think those socks would fit me?"**

Nico groaned. "Only Percy would even _think _of joking at a time like this!"

**"Not funny, Percy. Not funny at all."**

**The old lady in the middle took out a huge pair of scissors—gold and silver, long-bladed, like shears.**

"NO!" Poseidon shouted before curling up in a ball and beginning to rock backwards and forwards like a small child. Athena normally would have gone to get a camera to remember this moment of her enemy's distress, but she was too engrossed in the story, her mind working furiously.

**I heard Grover catch his breath.**

**"We're getting on the bus," he told me. "Come on."**

**"What?" I said. "It's a thousand degrees in there."**

"You thick headed IDIOT!" The yell came from Annabeth, making all the gods jump, and Athena looked at her questioningly. The girl proceeded to blush bright red and squeeze the dolphin hard as the other demi-gods chuckled. Feeling merciful, Leo read on.

**"Come on!'" He pried open the door and climbed inside, but I stayed back.**

Annabeth cringed alongside Poseidon. Everyone else was on the edge of their seats, waiting…

**Across the road, the old ladies were still watching me. The middle one cut the yarn, and I swear I could hear that**_**snip**___**across four lanes of traffic.**

All of the gods let out a gasp at eh same time, something that Hermes would have found highly amusing, if it hadn't been this kind of situation.

**Her two friends balled up the electric-blue socks, leaving me wondering who they could possibly be for—Sasquatch or Godzilla.**

Nico groaned "Again, only Percy!"

**At the rear of the bus, the driver wrenched a big chunk of smoking metal out of the engine compartment. The bus shuddered, and the engine roared back to life.**

**The passengers cheered.**

**"Darn right!" yelled the driver. He slapped the bus with his hat. "Everybody back on board!"**

**Once we got going, I started feeling feverish, as if I'd caught the flu.**

"So he isn't a complete idiot then!" Mumbled Athena, but nobody heard her, or if they did, they chose to ignore this comment. Once again, the throne room fell silent.

**Grover didn't look much better. He was shivering and his teeth were chattering.**

**"Grover?"**

**"Yeah?"**

**"What are you not telling me?"**

" A lot of things child." Sighed Hestia good naturedly whilst trying to coax Poseidon's head out from his hands.

**He dabbed his forehead with his shirt sleeve. "Percy, what did you see back at the fruit stand?"**

**"You mean the old ladies? What is it about them, man? They're not like ... Mrs. Dodds, are they?"**

"Worse." Gasped out Poseidon. He really was in a bad state.

**His expression was hard to read, but I got the feeling that the fruit-stand ladies were something much, much worse than Mrs. Dodds. He said, "Just tell me what you saw."**

**"The middle one took out her scissors, and she cut the yarn."**

**He closed his eyes and made a gesture with his fingers that might've been crossing himself, but it wasn't. It was something else, something almost—older.**

Athena rolled her eyes, but wisely decided not to say anything, now was not the time to antagonize her uncle.

**He said, "You saw her snip the cord."**

**"Yeah. So?" But even as I said it, I knew it was a big deal.**

**"This is not happening," Grover mumbled. He started chewing at his thumb. "I don't want this to be like the last time."**

Everyone looked at Zeus, expecting an outburst at this, but he was too busy staring at Thalia, th he started glaring at the glowing moon above her head.

**"What last time?"**

**"Always sixth grade. They never get past sixth."**

**"Grover," I said, because he was really starting to scare me. "What are you talking about?"**

"Me." Winced Thalia, she was beginning to feel uncomfortable about the look in her father's eyes.

**"Let me walk you home from the bus station. Promise me."**

**This seemed like a strange request to me, but I promised he could.**

**"Is this like a superstition or something?" I asked.**

**No answer.**

**"Grover—that snipping of the yarn. Does that mean somebody is going to die?"**

**He looked at me mournfully, like he was already picking the kind of flowers I'd like best on my coffin.**

"Knowing Grover he probably was." Leo attempted to break the tension as he closed the book and looked around the anxious faces in the room. Unfortunately it didn't work. Luckily Zeus chose that moment to snap.

"Thalia, you are _my _daughter, so why are you sitting under _her_ symbol?" He jerked his thumb at Artemis who bristled with anger.

The girl sighed "We're not supposed to introduce ourselves until its our turn to read father!"

"Well then, you better read _now _because I want an explanation young lady!"

Leo looked at her before handing over the book.

"Fine." She stood up. "I'm Thalia Grace, daughter of Zeus and lieutenant of Artemis.!" She bowed to the afore mentioned goddess, then reclaimed her seat. To avert any other questions, she quickly began to read the next chapter. **"Grover unexpectedly loses his pants."**


	4. Grover Unexpectedly Loses his Pants

"**Grover Unexpectedly Loses his Pants,"**

Thalia broke off, shaking his head in mock disappointment, "Percy and his weird chapter titles!"

"Well, at least this could be interesting, right Thals?" Annabeth broke off from bear hugging the poor dolphin for a second to smile across the empty seat at her best friend.

**Confession time: I ditched Grover as soon as we got to the bus terminal.**

"Idiot boy!" Everyone in the room looked at the sea god in shock, they all expected this kind of comment from Athena (whose eyes seemed to be popping out of her head, her mouth wide open) but not from the boy's father. Poseidon was just glaring at the book in the girl's hands.

**I know, I know. It was rude. But Grover was freaking me out, looking at me like I was a dead man, muttering "Why does this always happen?" and "Why does it always have to he sixth grade?"**

**Whenever he got upset, Grover's****bladder****acted up, so I wasn't surprised when, as soon as we got off the bus, he made me promise to wait for him, then made a beeline for the restroom.**

**Instead of waiting, I got my suitcase, slipped outside, and caught the first taxi uptown.**

"Momma's boy!" Hissed Ares, Poseidon was too busy fuming over his son's idiocy to comment.

**"East One-hundred-and-fourth and First," I told the driver.**

**A word about my mother, before you meet her.**

Aphrodite's head sharply turned to look at her uncle when she sensed the strong feeling of love coming of him. It shocked her that the some mortal woman had ,managed to capture the heart of this particularly aloof immortal so tightly.

**Her name is Sally Jackson and she's the best person in the world,**

"Yes she is boy, yes she is!" Poseidon told the book, causing most of the other immortals in the room to snicker at the tone in his voice and the twinkle in his eye.

**which just proves my theory that the best people have the rottenest luck.**

"It's true, she is a great person!" Annabeth nodded her agreement, her mind filling up wit recent happy memories that brought tears to her eyes. Then she remembered the reason for their present closeness and she buried her face in the dolphin again.

**Her own parents died in a plane crash when she was five, and she was raised by an uncle who didn't care much about her. **

Poseidon glared at his younger brother who just started whistling innocently while looking anywhere apart from at his irritated older brother.

**She wanted to be a novelist, so she spent high school working to save enough money for a college with a good creative-writing program.**

"Wow, you had an affair with an intelligent woman for once algae brain!"

Poseidon ignored his niece in favor of reminiscing the summer spent with is mortal love.

**Then her uncle got cancer, and she had to quit school her senior year to take care of him. After he died, she was left with no money, no family, and no****diploma**.

**The only good break she ever got was meeting my dad.**

Poseidon smiled triumphantly at this, proud that his son saw their meeting as good fortune.

**I don't have any memories of him, just this sort of warm glow, maybe the barest trace of his smile.**

"You VISITED him? Do ancient laws mean NOTHING to you?" Yelled Zeus.

Poseidon just glared at his younger brother and spoke in a frosty voice, "Every parent has a duty to visit their child brother, at least I didn't show my love by turning my son into a _tree_!"

Both Zeus and Thalia flinched at this statement, to avoid having to remember events in the past, she read on.

**My mom doesn't like to talk about him because it makes her sad. She has no pictures.**

**See, they weren't married. She told me he was rich and important, and their relationship was a secret. Then one day, he set sail across the Atlantic on some important journey, and he never came back.**

**Lost at sea, my mom told me. Not dead. Lost at sea.**

"Apt reason, though technically, your father can _never _be lost when he is at sea boy." Commented Athena.

**She worked odd jobs, took night classes to get her high school diploma, and raised me on her own. She never complained or got mad. Not even once. But I knew I wasn't an easy kid.**

**Finally, she married Gabe Ugliano,**

The whole room shook with the intensity of Poseidon's growl, no one dared comment, even Ares was terrified by the immense killing aura coming from the older immortal.

**who was nice the first thirty seconds we knew him,**

"They always are." Muttered Hermes sourly, staring at his step mother who just sniffed and looked unimpressed.

**then showed his true colors as a world-class jerk. When I was young, I nick named him Smelly Gabe. I'm sorry, but it's the truth. The guy reeked like moldy garlic pizza wrapped in gym shorts.**

"Pleasant." Stated Apollo while Aphrodite shuddered delicately.

**Between the two of us, we made my mom's life pretty hard. The way Smelly Gabe treated her, the way he and I got along ... well, when I came home is a good example.**

**I walked into our little apartment, hoping my mom would be home from work. Instead, Smelly Gabe was in the living room, playing poker with his buddies. The television blared ESPN. Chips and beer cans were strewn all over the carpet.**

The goddess of love turned faintly green and placed a slender hand over her mouth. Her husband leaned over and petted her arm lightly.

**Hardly looking up, he said around his cigar, "So, you're home."**

"You better not do anything to my son _mortal_!" Poseidon managed to spit out, his face livid.

**"Where's my mom?"**

**"Working," he said. "You got any cash?"**

The sea god's face was now thoroughly furious, but for once, he was not the only one, the killing intent in the room made all the demi-gods shift uncomfortably in their seats. Hurriedly, Thalia read on.

**That was it. No**_**Welcome back. Good to see you. How has your life been the last six months?**_

Poseidon's grip tightened on his trident, nearly snapping the weapon in half.

**Gabe had put on weight. He looked like a tusk less walrus in thrift-store clothes. He had about three hairs on his head, all combed over his bald scalp, as if that made him handsome or something.**

"That sounds perfectly horrid!" Everyone in the room looked at the gentle Hestia in wonder, they had never heard her bad mouth anyone before!

**He managed the Electronics Mega-Mart in Queens, but he stayed home most of the time. I don't know why he hadn't been fired long before. He just kept on collecting paychecks, spending the money on cigars that made me nauseous, and on beer, of course. Always beer. Whenever I was home, he expected me to provide his gambling funds. He called that our "guy secret." Meaning, if I told my mom, he would punch my lights out.**

Poseidon leant back with an evil look on his face, mumbling things about mysterious drownings and ships lost at sea. Everyone pretended, not wanting to get involved in such dangerous plans.

**"I don't have any cash," I told him.**

**He raised a greasy eyebrow.**

**Gabe could sniff out money like a bloodhound, which was surprising, since his own smell should've covered up everything else.**

**"You took a taxi from the bus station," he said. "Probably paid with a twenty. Got six, seven bucks in change. Somebody expects to live under this roof, he ought to carry his own weight. Am I right, Eddie?"**

"Again, I say he is horrid!" Stated Hestia.

**Eddie, the super of the apartment building, looked at me with a twinge of sympathy. "Come on, Gabe," he said. "The kid just got here."**

"Humph, they all need more cereal! Grumbled Demeter.

**"Am I**_**right**_**?**_**"**___**Gabe repeated.**

**Eddie scowled into his bowl of pretzels. The other two guys passed gas in harmony.**

Aphrodite suddenly stood and left the room, quickly followed by her husband.

Apollo laughed so hard he nearly fell out of his chair. "Looks like poor lil' Afro can't deal with men!"

"I am now positive that I made the right decision!" Stated Artemis, glaring at her brother in disgust.

**"Fine," I said. I dug a wad of dollars out of my pocket and threw the money on the table. "I hope you lose."**

"Oh, don't worry boy, he will!" Muttered Hermes, his eyes flashing with malice.

**"Your report card came, brain boy!" he shouted after me. "I wouldn't act so snooty!"**

"The boy is dyslexic and has ADHD for crying out loud, no one expects him to do well!"

Poseidon glared at his niece, trying to decide whether she was trying to defend or insult his son.

**I slammed the door to my room, which really wasn't my room. During school months, it was Gabe's "study." He didn't study anything in there except old car magazines, but he loved shoving my stuff in the closet, leaving his muddy boots on my windowsill, and doing his best to make the place smell like his nasty cologne and cigars and stale beer.**

"Er, I think I'm going to go check on Aphrodite!" Artemis swiftly strode out of the door.

**I dropped my suitcase on the bed. Home sweet home.**

"Ah, how I've missed Percy's sarcasm in the last few months!" Whispered Nico to his friends, earning himself a punch to the ribs from the girl under the symbol of Demeter.

**Gabe's smell was almost worse than the nightmares about Mrs. Dodds,** **or the sound of that old fruit lady's shears snipping the yarn.**

"It smells worse than my kingdom then!" Stated Hades matter of factly.

**But as soon as I thought that, my legs felt weak. I remembered Grover's look of panic—how he'd made me promise I wouldn't go home without him. A sudden chill rolled through me. I felt like someone—something—was looking for me right now, maybe pounding its way up the stairs, growing long, horrible talons.**

"It's possible." Stated Dionysus, looking as though the prospect was greatly entertaining for him.

**Then I heard my mom's voice. "Percy?"**

**She opened the bedroom door, and my fears melted.**

**My mother can make me feel good just by walking into the room.**

Poseidon sighed, his eyes sparkling.

**Her eyes sparkle and change color in the light. Her smile is as warm as a quilt. She's got a few gray streaks mixed in with her long brown hair, but I never think of her as old. When she looks at me, it's like she's seeing all the good things about me, none of the bad.**

**I've never heard her raise her voice or say an unkind word to anyone, not even me or Gabe.**

**"Oh, Percy." She hugged me tight. "I can't believe it. You've grown since Christmas!"**

**Her red-white-and-blue Sweet on America uniform smelled like the best things in the world: chocolate, licorice, and all the other stuff she sold at the candy shop**

"Anyone else feeling hungry?" Chimed in Nico gaining an strange look from his father and a an approving look from Hermes.

**in Grand Central. She'd brought me a huge bag of "free samples," the way she always did when I came home.**

"Mmmm free sampes." Drooled Travis.

**We sat together on the edge of the bed. While I attacked the blueberry sour strings, she ran her hand through my hair and demanded to know everything I hadn't put in my letters. She didn't mention anything about my getting expelled. She didn't seem to care about that. But was I okay? Was her little boy doing all right?**

All the immortals in the room looked at Poseidon in shock.

"What?"

"Wow brother, you actually chose a really great woman for once!" Hera stated grudgingly. Poseidon just grinned like a small child who had just been given a treat.

**I told her she was smothering me, and to lay off and all that, but secretly, I was really, really glad to see her.**

**From the other room, Gabe yelled, "Hey, Sally—how about some bean dip, huh?"**

Demeter's eyes narrowed. "He does not d_eserve _any of my precious plants!"

**I gritted my teeth.**

**My mom is the nicest lady in the world. She should've been married to a millionaire,**

"Oh, why didn't you come and live with me Sally?" Poseidon gasped out, looking more like a sulky child now.

**not to some jerk like Gabe.**

**For her sake, I tried to sound upbeat about my last days at Yancy Academy. I told her I wasn't too down about the expulsion. I'd lasted almost the whole year this time. I'd made some new friends. I'd done pretty well in Latin. And honestly, the fights hadn't been as bad as the headmaster said. I liked Yancy Academy. I really did. I put such a good spin on the year, I almost convinced myself.**

**I started choking up, thinking about Grover and Mr. Brunner. Even Nancy Bobofit suddenly didn't seem so bad.**

**Until that trip to the museum ...**

**"What?" my mom asked. Her eyes tugged at my conscience, trying to pull out the secrets. "Did something scare you?"**

**"No, Mom."**

**I felt bad lying. I wanted to tell her about Mrs. Dodds and the three old ladies with the yarn, but I thought it would sound stupid.**

"Well, I guess that is reasonable!" Mumbled Athena with a sour look on her face. "Though she probably will believe you, after having an affair with a god!"

**She pursed her lips. She knew I was holding back, but she didn't push me.**

**"I have a surprise for you," she said. "We're going to the beach."**

**My eyes widened. "Montauk?"**

Poseidon's anger drained from his face and to be replaced with the look of a man in love.

A slightly green Artemis re-entered the room. "You do _not _want to go out there for a while!"

Leo and the girl who sat under the dove of Aphrodite looked at each other embarrassedly before looking away quickly, both of their faces bright red.

**"Three nights—same cabin."**

**"When?"**

**She smiled. "As soon as I get changed."**

**I couldn't believe it. My mom and I hadn't been to Montauk the last two summers, because Gabe said there wasn't enough money.**

"But there is enough money for him to waste gambling?" Shouted Annabeth, before she went back to chocking the teddy.

**Gabe appeared in the doorway and growled, "Bean dip, Sally? Didn't you hear me?"**

**I wanted to punch him,**

"He should!" Seethed Poseidon. "I would!"

**but I met my mom's eyes and I understood she was offering me a deal: be nice to Gabe for a little while. Just until she was ready to leave for Montauk. Then we would get out of here.**

**"I was on my way, honey," she told Gabe. "We were just talking about the trip."**

**Gabe's eyes got small. "The trip? You mean you were serious about that?"**

**"I knew it," I muttered. "He won't let us go."**

"He better," Thalia whispered to the boy next to her, the one under the eagle of Zeus, "or our uncle might pay him an unexpected visit!" He snickered in response.

**"Of course he will," my mom said evenly. "Your step father is just worried about money. That's all. Besides," she added, "Gabriel won't have to settle for bean dip. I'll make him enough seven-layer dip for the whole weekend. Guacamole. Sour cream. The works."**

**Gabe softened a bit. "So this money for your trip ... it comes out of your clothes budget, right?"**

The girl under the dove looked stunned at this, something her friends wasted no time in picking up on.

"Like mother, like daughter!" Chuckled the boy under Apollo's symbol.

"She'll be begging for makeup lessons next!" Chuckled Leo, getting himself a look of sheer hatred from his step-sister.

To avoid a fight, Thalia quickly read on.

**"Yes, honey," my mother said.**

**"And you won't take my car anywhere but there and back."**

**"We'll be very careful."**

**Gabe scratched his double chin. "Maybe if you hurry with that seven-layer dip ... And maybe if the kid apologizes for interrupting my poker game."**

Nobody spoke, they were all trying not to notice the intense killing intent coming from the front of the room.

**Maybe if I kick you in your soft spot, I thought. And make you sing soprano for a week.**

Hades eyes glinted "An interesting idea!" He made a note in a leather bound black book that had just appeared in his hand. All the males in the room flinched.

**But my mom's eyes warned me not to make him mad.**

**Why did she put up with this guy?**

**I wanted to scream. Why did she care what he thought?**

**"I'm sorry," I muttered. "I'm really sorry I interrupted your incredibly important poker game. Please go back to it right now."**

Poseidon grinned, "That's my boy!"

**Gabe's eyes narrowed. His tiny brain was probably trying to detect sarcasm in my statement.**

**"Yeah, whatever," he decided.**

**He went back to his game.**

**"Thank you, Percy," my mom said. "Once we get to Montauk, we'll talk more about... whatever you've forgotten to tell me, okay?"**

**For a moment, I thought I saw anxiety in her eyes—the same fear I'd seen in Grover during the bus ride—as if my mom too felt an odd chill in the air.**

**But then her smile returned, and I figured I must have been mistaken. She ruffled my hair and went to make Gabe his seven-layer dip.**

There was a bright flash which drew everyone's attention to where Hermes and Apollo now sat with a HUGE tub of seven layer dip and a GIGANTIC ball of chips.

**An hour later we were ready to leave.**

**Gabe took a break from his poker game long enough to watch me lug my mom's bags to the car. He kept griping and groaning about losing her cooking—and more important, his '78 Camaro—for the whole weekend.**

**"Not a scratch on this car, brain boy," he warned me as I loaded the last bag. "Not one little scratch."**

"Like he'd be the one driving it, he's _12!_"

**Like I'd be the one driving. I was twelve.**

Poseidon grinned proudly. Athena just looked spooked.

**But that didn't matter to Gabe. If a seagull so much as pooped on his paint job, he'd find a way to blame me.**

**Watching him lumber back toward the apartment building, I got so mad I did something I can't explain. As Gabe reached the doorway, I made the hand gesture I'd seen Grover make on the bus, a sort of warding-off-evil gesture, a clawed hand over my heart, then a shoving movement toward Gabe. The screen door slammed shut so hard it whacked him in the butt and sent him flying up the stair case as if he'd been shot from a cannon.**

"Hang on," murmured Thalia. "We can't even do that, can we Jason?"

The boy under the eagle shook his head.

"That's just cause Percy's strong!" Stated Annabeth, the pride in her voice was so obvious that everyone in the room looked at her in shock. Athena looked aghast that her favourite daughter was complimenting the son of her enemy. Just what was he to her?

**Maybe it was just the wind, or some freak accident with the hinges, but I didn't stay long enough to find out.**

**I got in the Camaro and told my mom to step on it.**

**Our rental cabin was on the south shore, way out at the tip of Long Island. It was a little pastel box with faded curtains, half sunken into the dunes. There was always sand in the sheets and spiders** **i****n the cabinets,** **and most of the time the sea was too cold to swim in.**

"Is that even possible?" Asked Apollo, Poseidon shook his head.

**I loved the place.**

"As he should!" Smiled Poseidon.

**We'd been going there since I was a baby. My mom had been going even longer. She never exactly said, but I knew why the beach was special to her. It was the place where she'd met my dad.**

"So that's why he keeps going on about it!" Rachael gasped in understanding.

**As we got closer to Montauk, she seemed to grow younger, years of worry and work disappearing from her face. Her eyes turned the colour of the sea.**

"She always was deeply connected to the sea, it was one of the reasons why I was interested in her!"

**We got there at sunset, opened all the cabin's windows, and went through our usual cleaning routine. We walked on the beach, fed blue corn chips to the seagulls, and munched on blue jelly beans, blue saltwater taffy, and all the other free samples my mom had brought from work.**

"Percy and the blue food, everything he eats is blue!" Exclaimed Nico, shaking his head

**I guess I should explain the blue food.**

"Oooh, so we're finally going to get that an answer to that old question then?" Asked a keen Rachael who moved forward in her seat to listen better.

**See, Gabe had once told my mom there was no such thing. They had this fight, which seemed like a really small thing at the time. But ever since, my mom went out of her way to eat blue. She baked blue birthday cakes. She mixed blueberry smoothies. She bought blue-corn tortilla chips and brought home blue candy from the shop. This—along with keeping her maiden name, Jackson, rather than calling herself Mrs. Ugliano—was proof that she wasn't totally suckered by Gabe. She did have a rebellious streak, like me.**

Poseidon smiled fondly at this reminder of the one he loved.

**When it got dark, we made a fire. We roasted hot dogs and marshmallows. Mom told me stories about when she was a kid, back before her parents died in the plane crash. She told me about the books she wanted to write someday, when she had enough money to quit the candy shop.**

**Eventually, I got up the nerve to ask about what was always on my mind whenever we came to Montauk—my father. Mom's eyes went all misty. I figured she would tell me the same things she always did, but I never got tired of hearing them.**

"That's so sad!" Exclaimed a slightly ruffled Aphrodite as she entered the room, shortly followed by her husband. The other people in the room looked away and tried not to laugh at the couple. Ares just glared at his disloyal girlfriend.

**"He was kind, Percy," she said. "Tall, handsome, and powerful. But gentle, too. You have his black hair, you know, and his green eyes."**

"Yeah, he really does look like his dad." Sighed Annabeth dreamily, before realising what she had said and smaking a hand over her mouth.

**Mom fished a blue jelly bean out of her candy bag. "I wish he could see you, Percy. He would be so proud."**

**I wondered how she could say that. What was so great about me? A dyslexic, hyperactive boy with a D+ report card, kicked out of school for the sixth time in six years.**

**"How old was I?" I asked. "I mean ... when he left?"**

**She watched the flames. "He was only with me for one summer, Percy. Right here at this beach. This cabin."**

**"But... he knew me as a baby."**

**"No, honey. He knew I was expecting a baby, but he never saw you. He had to leave before you were born."**

Poseidon looked guilty, "I didn't tell her!"

**I tried to square that with the fact that I seemed to remember ... something about my father. A warm glow. A smile.**

Poseidon just sifted uncomfortably while all the females in the room cooed slightly. Ares just snickered at his uncle's reaction.

**I had always assumed he knew me as a baby. My mom had never said it outright, but still, I'd felt it must be true. Now, to be told that he'd never even seen me...**

**I felt angry at my father.**

"That's how we all feel really." Commented Leo sadly. All the immortals in the room looked at the floor trying to hide their guilt.

**Maybe it was stupid, but I resented him for going on that ocean voyage, for not having the guts to marry my mom. He'd left us, and now we were stuck with Smelly Gabe.**

**"Are you going to send me away again?" I asked her. "To another boarding school?"**

**She pulled a marshmallow from the fire.**

**"I don't know, honey." Her voice was heavy. "I think ... I think we'll have to do something."**

**"Because you don't want me around?"**

"Now that was uncalled for!" Mumbled Demeter.

**I regretted the words as soon as they were out.**

**My mom's eyes welled with tears. She took my hand, squeezed it tight. "Oh, Percy, no. I—I**_**have**___**to, honey. For your own good. I have to send you away."**

Poseidon winced, he did not like hurting his son and love in this way, but there was really no choice, it would always be like this for any of his children.

**Her words reminded me of what Mr. Brunner had said—that it was best for me to leave Yancy.**

**"Because I'm not normal," I said.**

"Curse you and you lack of tact Chiron!" Growled Poseidon, though he could not truly bring himself to hate the centaur.

**"You say that as if it's a bad thing, Percy. But you don't realize how important you are. I thought Yancy Academy would be far enough away. I thought you'd finally be safe."**

**"Safe from what?"**

"Your murdering uncles!" Stated Apollo happily before going back to his bean dip.

**She met my eyes, and a flood of memories came back to me—all the weird, scary things that had ever happened to me, some of which I'd tried to forget.**

**During third grade, a man in a black trench coat had stalked me on the playground. When the teachers threatened to call the police, he went away growling, but no one believed me when I told them that under his broad-brimmed hat, the man only had one eye, right in the middle of his head.**

"I really did like watching my son grow up." A guilty sea god let out, ignoring the glares from his brothers.

**Before that—a really early memory. I was in preschool, and a teacher accidentally put me down for a nap in a cot that a snake had slithered into. My mom screamed when she came to pick me up and found me playing with a limp, scaly rope I'd somehow managed to strangle to death with my meaty toddler hands.**

Everyone in the room looked shocked. "Powerful!" Whistled Travis.

**In every single school, something creepy had happened, something unsafe, and I was forced to move.**

**I knew I should tell my mom about the old ladies at the fruit stand, and Mrs. Dodds at the art museum, about my weird hallucination that I had sliced my math teacher into dust with a sword. But I couldn't make myself tell her. I had a strange feeling the news would end our trip to Montauk, and I didn't want that.**

"Sentimental punk, you're gonna get yourself killed!"

"Why do you sound so happy about that Ares?"

"No reason uncle P!"

**"I've tried to keep you as close to me as I could," my mom said. "They told me that was a mistake. But there's only one other option, Percy—the place your father wanted to send you. And I just... I just can't stand to do it."**

**"My father wanted me to go to a special school?"**

**"Not a school," she said softly. "A summer camp."**

**My head was spinning. Why would my dad—who hadn't even stayed around long enough to see me born— talk to my mom about a summer camp? And if it was so important, why hadn't she ever mentioned it before?**

**"I'm sorry, Percy," she said, seeing the look in my eyes. "But I can't talk about it. I—I couldn't send you to that place. It might mean saying good-bye to you for good."**

"She really is a good mother!" Sighed Demeter, no one else commented.

**"For good? But if it's only a summer camp ..."**

**She turned toward the fire, and I knew from her expression that if I asked her any more questions she would start to cry.**

**That night I had a vivid dream.**

"Ugh." Winced Thalia, cutting herself off. "Percy's dreams are _never_ a good thing."

"Yeah." Chimed in Rachael, "He's nearly as good as predicting disasters as I am!"

"Well, that's 'cause he causes most of them though!" Added Annabeth grimly.

**It was storming on the beach, and two beautiful animals, a white horse and a golden eagle, were trying to kill each other at the edge of the surf.**

"Why are we fighting?" Asked Zeus.

"No idea." Answered Poseidon. The demi-gods all looked uncomfortable and Thalia decided to read on before they could ask anything else.

**The eagle swooped down and slashed the horse's muzzle with its huge talons. The horse reared up and kicked at the eagles wings. As they fought, the ground rumbled, and a monstrous voice chuckled somewhere beneath the earth, goading the animals to fight harder.**

All immortal eyes fell on Hades who just glared at the floor sullenly, seething about disloyal family members jumping to conclusions.

**I ran toward them, knowing I had to stop them from killing each other, but I was running in slow motion.**

The accusing glances turned into ones of shock, the 6 elder Olympians looked at each other uneasily, this did not sound good!

**I knew I would be too late. I saw the eagle dive down, its beak aimed at the horse's wide eyes,**

"I win!" Stated Zeus happily, Poseidon glared at him.

**and I screamed,**_**No!**_

**I woke with a start.**

**Outside, it really was storming, the kind of storm that cracks trees and blows down houses. There was no horse or eagle on the beach, just lightning making false daylight, and twenty-foot waves pounding the dunes like artillery.**

"Sounds like an interesting fight to watch!" Ares stated. Everyone else in the room looked at him, doubting his sanity. Even Clarisse looked at him uneasily.

**With the next thunderclap, my mom woke. She sat up, eyes wide, and said, "Hurricane."**

**I knew that was crazy. Long Island never sees hurricanes this early in the summer. But the ocean seemed to have forgotten.**

"I didn't forget, I just didn't care!" Poseidon stated in his own defense.

**Over the roar of the wind, I heard a distant bellow, an angry, tortured sound that made my hair stand on end.**

**Then a much closer noise, like mallets in the sand. A desperate voice—someone yelling, pounding on our cabin door.**

**My mother sprang out of bed in her nightgown and threw open the lock.**

**Grover stood framed in the doorway against a backdrop of pouring rain. But he wasn't... he wasn't exactly Grover.**

**"Searching all night," he gasped. "What were you thinking?"**

"Oh so _now _the incompetent little…"

"DAD!" Thalia cut off her father with that one word before carrying on.

**My mother looked at me in terror—not scared of Grover, but of why he'd come.**

**"Percy," she said, shouting to be heard over the rain. "What happened at school? What didn't you tell me?"**

**I was frozen, looking at Grover. I couldn't understand what I was seeing.**

_**"O Zeu kai alloi theoi!"**___**he yelled. **

"You really need to teach those satyrs some manners Dionysus." Chided Hestia gently.

The mentioned god bowed his head in chagrin, even he did not like upsetting this kindly relation.

**"It's right behind me! Didn't you**_**tell**___**her?"**

**I was too shocked to register that he'd just cursed in Ancient Greek, and I'd understood him perfectly. I was too shocked to wonder how Grover had gotten here by himself in the middle of the night. Because Grover didn't have his pants on—**

"Sure, that's what he noticed!" Exclaimed Nico, rolling his eyes in exasperation.

"Well, it _is _Percy!" Commented Thalia before continuing.

**and where his legs should be ... where his legs should be...**

**My mom looked at me sternly and talked in a tone she'd never used before:**_**"Percy.**___**Tell me**_**now**_**!"**

**I stammered something about the old ladies at the fruit stand, and Mrs. Dodds, and my mom stared at me, her face deathly pale in the flashes of lightning.**

**She grabbed her purse, tossed me my rain jacket, and said, "Get to the car. Both of you.**_**Go**_**!"**

"I really don't like this situation." Poseidon stated the obvious. No body seemed to notice that Annabeth was sitting right on the edge of her seat, anxiety taking over her face completely.

**Grover ran for the Camaro—but he wasn't running, exactly. He was trotting, shaking his shaggy hindquarters, and suddenly his story about a muscular disorder in his legs made sense to me. I understood how he could run so fast and still limp when he walked.**

**Because where his feet should be, there were no feet. There were cloven hooves.**

"That's it for the chapter." Stated Thalia, closing the book, "Now, if you don't mind, my lord Zeus, we shall continue in the order that we have been assigned." Thalia suggested mockingly. Seeming not to notice this, Zeus nodded his assent and Thalia passed the book over to the girl next to Leo.

The girl, stood and bowed before regaining her seat, forgetting the introduction until the boy next to her poked her in the ribs.

"Oh, yeah, I'm Piper Mclean." She paused and shuddered before continuing in a mocking voice, "daughter of Aphrodite."

"Hey, what is wrong with being my daughter?"

Piper just smiled dryly before reading **"My mother teaches me bull fighting."**

Aphrodite leans back in her chair, she was still irritated, but she was also eager to see what would happen next in the story. Anyway, she could pursue the matter later.

However, before the girl could continue reading, there was a small flash and a scrap of paper drifted down in front of Poseidon.


	5. My Mother Teaches Me Bullfighting

Looking slightly dazed, Poseidon leaned forward and plucked the ragged piece of paper from the air in front of him, reading it out loud for the whole room to hear:

_So, it seems that you are progressing quite well with the story so far, and we really hope that you enjoy it, however, it seems s though the hero is going to be a little late as he has been abducted by a mad woman and we are currently working on getting back. Anyway, there are some things in the next chapter that will be a bit… difficult for some of you. Our advice is: SEND UNCLE P OUT OF THE ROOM BEFORE CONTINUING! Now, you can't say we didn't warn you, carry on…_

_Pheobus Apollo And Hermes_

_Oh, yes, p.s we are going to send a little present for uncle p so he doesn't get sulky about being sent out, just remember to wipe the kid's memory before you let him go!_

No sooner had the sea god finished talking than there was a small flash of light and a toddler appeared by his feet. This young boy had black hair, green eyes and looked like a miniature version of his father.

"It's Percy!" Annabeth could not help but gasp out.

Hearing the noise, the small boy turned, so that now his back was to the gods, pointed at her and stated "Pretty!" before crawling over and hugging her leg. Much to the amusement of everyone in the room it might be prudent to mention. In fact, the only faces that did not look happy when the daughter of Athena bent down to cuddle the child, were the boy's father, who merely seemed to be in shock, and the girl's mother who did not seem happy with this situation, not happy at all!

"Will someone please explain to me what is going on here? Why is the son of the sea rat clinging to my daughter?" She demanded briskly, making the half-bloods (and Rachel) laugh all the harder.

"Nope!" Stated Travis, popping the p.

"We wouldn't like to give out spoilers!" Finished his brother.

Athena simply sat back into her chair fuming, but in order to avoid the fight that was surely going to come next, Piper began reading.

"**My Mother Teaches Me Bullfighting,"**

"Oh yeah," Mused Apollo out loud when Poseidon cringed at the chapter title, "Weren't we meant to get uncle P to leave the room before reading this?"

"I'm staying right here!" He stated in a voice that brooked no opposition and so, it was with a terrified voice that Piper continued.

**We tore through the night along dark country roads. Wind slammed against the Camaro. Rain lashed the wind shield. I didn't know how my mom could see anything, but she kept her foot on the gas.**

**Every time there was a flash of lightning,**

"BOOM!" Screeched the little kid happily, making everyone in the room laugh apart from Poseidon who just glared at his brother angrily. Zeus pretended not to notice.

**I looked at Grover sitting next to me in the backseat and I wondered if I'd gone insane, or if he was wearing some kind of shag-carpet pants.**

"Percy and his similes!" Chuckled Nico.

**But, no, the smell was one I remembered from kindergarten field trips to the petting zoo— lanolin, like from wool. The smell of a wet barnyard animal.**

"Pony!" cried the little boy, snuggling up to the nice, warm girl with the pretty face who was petting him on the head softly. Anabeth just laughed and Poseidon stared at his son with a mixture of fondness and longing in his eyes.

**All I could think to say was, "So, you and my mom... know each other?"**

**Graver's eyes flitted to the rearview mirror, though there were****no cars behind us. "Not exactly," he said. "I mean, we've never met in person. But she knew I was watching you."**

**"Watching me?"**

"Enter Grover the stalker." Whispered Thalia, making the rest of the demi-gods snort with laughter.

**"Keeping tabs on you. Making sure you were okay. But I wasn't faking being your friend," he added hastily. "I**_**am**___**your friend."**

**"Urm ... what**_**are**___**you, exactly?"**

**"That doesn't matter right now."**

"Fair point, but still irritating just the same!" Muttered Apollo.

**"It doesn't matter? From the waist down, my best friend is a donkey—"**

"Donkey!" Cheered baby Percy while the "twins" literally fell out of their chairs laughing.

"Grover wouldn't like to hear _that_!" the girl under the torch symbol said dryly, but there was a note of suppressed laughter in her voice.

**Grover let out a sharp, throaty "**_**Blaa-ha-ha**_**!"**

"Ugh, I hate it when they do that, it cuts right through you!" Winced Dionysus.

**I'd heard him make that sound before, but I'd always assumed it was a nervous laugh. Now I realized it was more of an irritated bleat.**

**"Goat!" he cried.**

**"What?"**

**"I'm a**_**goat**___**from the waist down."**

**"You just said it didn't matter."**

**"**_**Blaa-ha-ha**_**!** **There are satyrs who would trample you underhoof for such an insult!"**

"It's true!" smirked Dionysus, sounding thoroughly like he had seen this done before.

**"Whoa. Wait. Satyrs. You mean like ... Mr. Brunner's myths?"**

"_Now _the boy catches on. Idiot!" Mumbled Athena, but before Poseidon could do anything in response other than shift in his chair slightly, a loud cry of "Meanie!" came from baby Percy who then proceeded to stick his tongue out at the wisdom goddess, who leaned back to sulk in her chair while her uncle burst out laughing.

**"Were those old ladies at the fruit stand a**_**myth,**___**Percy? Was Mrs. Dodds a myth?"**

**"So you**_**admit**___**there was a Mrs. Dodds!"**

Poseidon flinched at the name.

**"Of course."**

**"Then why—"**

**"The less you knew, the fewer monsters you'd attract," Grover said, like that should be perfectly obvious. "We put Mist over the humans' eyes. We hoped you'd think the Kindly One was a hallucination. But it was no good. You started to realize who you are."**

**"Who I—wait a minute, what do you mean?"**

"I can't believe that Percy took this long to get it!" Exclaimed Annabeth while the toddler started pulling on one of her ringlets.

"Percy!" Stated Piper before continuing reading, like that one word explained everything.

**The weird bellowing noise rose up again somewhere behind us, closer than before. Whatever was chasing us was still on our trail.**

**"Percy," my mom said, "there's too much to explain and not enough time. We have to get you to safety."**

**"Safety from what? Who's after me?"**

"Scary, bad men!" Chimed in Percy while his father nodded in agreement.

"Yes, I guess you could call your uncles that!"

Zeus and Hades spluttered in indignation while the rest of the council cracked up.

**"Oh, nobody much," Grover said, obviously still miffed about the donkey comment. "Just the Lord of the Dead and a few of his blood-thirstiest minions."**

"Why do they always blame me?" growled Hades.

"Because it normally is you father!" Sighed Nico.

Zeus' eyes narrowed at the word "father" and he began to glare at his eldest brother, but before he could say anything, Percy, who _had _been gazing dreamily into Annabeth's face, looked from Nico to Hades then screamed.

"Ah GHOST!"

And with that, he hid himself in the girl's hair and Zeus' anger faded, in fact, it looked as though he was finding it hard to keep a straight face as the two "ghosts" looked at the kid's back with dumbstruck expressions.

"Sharp kid you got there uncle!" Commented Ares. Poseidon chuckled.

**"Grover!"**

"Hang on, what's going on in the story again, I got lost after that!" Apollo called out.

Piper obliged to re-read the last paragraph before continuing.

**"Sorry, Mrs. Jackson. Could you drive faster, please?"**

**I tried to wrap my mind around what was happening, but I couldn't do it. I knew this wasn't a dream. I had no imagination. I could never dream up something this weird.**

"Yes you could!" Shouted Rachel and all the other demi-gods nodded in agreement.

**My mom made a hard left. We swerved onto a narrower road, racing past darkened farmhouses and wooded hills and PICK YOUR OWN STRAWBERRIES signs on white picket fences.**

"Mmmmm strawberries!" Sighed Demeter, and a bowl of fresh, red berries appeared in front of her. Everyone else just turned to look at her strangely. "Oh alright then!"

With a wave of her hand, a punnet of strawberries appeared before each person.

"That's better Aunty D!" Cheered Hermes, before he began to stuff his face. Baby Percy picked up the strawberries and began feeding them to Annabeth, much to the demi-gods amusement, Poseidon's shock, and Athena's disgust.

**"Where are we going?" I asked.**

**"The summer camp I told you about." My mother's voice was tight; she was trying for my sake not to be scared. "The place your father wanted to send you."**

**"The place you didn't want me to go."**

**"Please, dear," my mother begged. "This is hard enough. Try to understand. You're in danger."**

**"Because some old ladies cut yarn."**

Everyone in the room flinched. Ares started choking on a strawberry.

**"Those weren't old ladies," Grover said. "Those were the Fates. Do you know what it means—the fact they appeared in front of you? They only do that when you're about to ... when someone's about to die."**

**"Whoa. You said 'you.'"**

**"No I didn't. I said 'someone.'"**

**"You meant 'you.' As in**_**me.**_**"**

**"I meant**_**you,**___**like 'someone.' Not you,**_**you.**_**"**

"Anyone else confused?" Joked Travis, trying to break the tension. He failed.

**"Boys!" my mom said.**

**She pulled the wheel hard to the right, and I got a glimpse of a figure she'd swerved to avoid—a dark fluttering shape now lost behind us in the storm.**

**"What was that?" I asked.**

**"We're almost there," my mother said, ignoring my question.**

**"Another mile. Please. Please. Please."**

**I didn't know where**_**there**___**was, but I found myself leaning forward in the car, anticipating, wanting us to arrive.**

**Outside, nothing but rain and darkness—the kind of empty countryside you get way out on the tip of Long Island. I thought about Mrs. Dodds and the moment when she'd changed into the thing with pointed teeth and leathery wings. My limbs went numb from delayed shock. She really**_**hadn't**___**been human. She'd meant to kill me.**

"No shi- er I mean, duh!" Growled Clarisse, remembering the presence of the toddler half way through her sentence.

**Then I thought about Mr. Brunner ... and the sword he had thrown me. Before I could ask Grover about that, the hair rose on the back of my neck. There was a blinding flash, a jaw-rattling**_**boom!,**___**and our car exploded.**

"WEEEEE!" Yelled baby Percy, earning strange looks from everyone in the room.

**I remember feeling weightless, like I was being crushed, fried, and hosed down all at the same time.**

**I peeled my forehead off the back of the driver's seat and said, "Ow."**

Nervous laughter drifted around the throne room for a short space of time.

**"Percy!" my mom shouted.**

**"I'm okay..."**

**I tried to shake off the daze. I wasn't dead. The car hadn't really exploded. We'd swerved into a ditch. Our driver's-side doors were wedged in the mud. The roof had cracked open like an eggshell and rain was pouring in.**

Athena's eyes widened in understanding the second before Poseidon pressed his trident against his brother's throat. "if he dies…" He left his threat unfinished. Zeus just rolled his eyes at the theatrics, praying to his future self that he didn't actually kill the boy.

**Lightning.**

A gasp oh "Oh!" ran around the throne room as everyone suddenly grasped the reason for the sea god's wrath.

**That was the only explanation. We'd been blasted right off the road. **

"Now brother, that was a bit over the top don't you think?" Asked the gentle Hestia as she coaxed Poseidon back to his seat.

Zeus just shrugged. "Don't look at me, I haven't done _anything_ yet."

**Next to me in the backseat was a big motionless lump. "Grover!"**

Thalia threw her shoe right into the immortals face, completely erasing her father's victorious smile. "Grover is my _friend_ you are not allowed to hurt him!"

The entire room looked at Artemis' lieutenant with a look of both fear and wonder, no one ever talked to the king of the gods like that! Zeus himself, just leant back in his seat muttering about ungrateful children.

**He was slumped over, blood trickling from the side of his mouth. I shook his furry hip, thinking, No! Even if you are half barnyard animal, you're my best friend and I don't want you to die!**

"Soooo sweet!" Sang Aphrodite, smiling wickedly. Everyone else in the room shifted uneasily, a happy Aphrodite normally meant that something _horrible _was going to happen to one of them.

**Then he groaned "Food," and I knew there was hope.**

Despite the tension in the room, this line still got a laugh.

**"Percy," my mother said, "we have to ..." Her voice faltered.**

**I looked back. In a flash of lightning, through the mud-spattered rear windshield, I saw a figure lumbering toward us on the shoulder of the road. The sight of it made my skin crawl. It was a dark silhouette of a huge guy, like a football player. He seemed to be holding a blanket over his head. His top half was bulky and fuzzy. His upraised hands made it look like he had horns.**

"The Minotaur?" Poseidon yelled at Hades, who just grinned evily.

Ares sat back in his chair licking his lips, this was going to be good!

**I swallowed hard. "Who is—"**

**"Percy," my mother said, deadly serious. "Get out of the car."**

**My mother threw herself against the driver's-side door. It was jammed shut in the mud. I tried mine. Stuck too. I looked up desperately at the hole in the roof. It might've been an exit, but the edges were sizzling and smoking.**

**"Climb out the passenger's side!" my mother told me. "Percy—you have to run. Do you see that big tree?"**

Thalia flinched at this, along with her father.

_**"What?"**_

**Another flash of lightning, and through the smoking hole in the roof I saw the tree she meant: a huge, White House Christmas tree-sized pine at the crest of the nearest hill.**

"OW! What the hell was that for?" Demanded Hades, glaring at his little brother who had just sent over 1000v running through his body.

"Oh, I don't know." Commented Zeus, his voice dripping with irony, "Maybe because it's your fault that my daughter was turned into a pine tree!"

"Dad, I'm right here!" Piped up Thalia making her dad growl and Hades grin smugly at his niece, he was beginning to like this girl!

**"That's the property line," my mom said. "Get over that hill and you'll see a big farmhouse down in the valley. Run and don't look back. Yell for help. Don't stop until you reach the door."**

**"Mom, you're coming too."**

"Sweet kid." Sighed Demeter, "Even if that is impossible."

Poseidon paled, and then looked down when he felt a little tug at his trouser leg.

"Daddy okay?" In the argument between the 2 brothers, no one had noticed the child cross the room.

"Daddy's okay!" He confirmed, picking his son up and placing him on his lap, all the females in the room "awed" at this picture. Apollo, Ares and Hermes all snickered at their uncle's use of language.

**Her face was pale, her eyes as sad as when she looked at the ocean.**

**"No!" I shouted. "You**_**are**___**coming with me. Help me carry Grover."**

**"Food!" Grover moaned, a little louder.**

**The man with the blanket on his head kept coming toward us, making his grunting, snorting noises. As he got closer, I realized he**_**couldn't**___**be holding a blanket over his head, because his hands—huge meaty hands—were swinging at his sides. There was no blanket. Meaning the bulky, fuzzy mass that was too big to be his head ... was his head. And the points that looked like horns…**

Annabeth squealed and went back to choking/ hugging the dolphin. Poseidon suddenly felt really glad that his son had decided to come over to him when he had.

**"He doesn't want**_**us**_**," my mother told me. "He wants**_**you.**___**Besides, I can't cross the property line."**

**"But..."**

**"We don't have time, Percy. Go. Please."**

**I got mad, then—mad at my mother,** **at Grover the goat,** **at the thing with horns that was lumbering toward us slowly and deliberately like, like a bull.**

"Idiot!" Exclaimed Athena, "He still doesn't know what it is!"

For once, Poseidon didn't bother to argue with the "meanie", instead, he just reassured himself that he could feel the warm weight of his son on his lap, then he remembered that this happened 10 years in the boy's future…

**I climbed across Grover and pushed the door open into the rain. "We're going together. Come on, Mom."**

**"I told you—"**

**"Mom! I am not leaving you. Help me with Grover."**

"Don't play the hero boy!" Whined Poseidon, while his son petted his face with his tiny hand.

"Percy? Not play the hero? Who is he talking about?" Thalia whispered across the Empty chair to her friend, trying to cheer her up. Apparently, the attempt was unsuccessful as the other girl just grimaced and confirmed "Well that _is_ his fatal flaw."

**I didn't wait for her answer. I scrambled outside, dragging Grover from the car. He was surprisingly light, but I couldn't have carried him very far if my mom hadn't come to my aid.**

**Together, we draped Grover's arms over our shoulders and started stumbling uphill through wet waist-high grass.**

**Glancing back, I got my first clear look at the monster. He was seven feet tall, easy, his arms and legs like something from the cover of**_**Muscle Man**___**magazine—bulging biceps and triceps and a bunch of other 'ceps, all stuffed like baseballs under vein-webbed skin. He wore no clothes except under wear—** **I mean, bright white Fruit of the Looms—which would've looked funny, except that the top half of his body was so scary. Coarse brown hair started at about his belly button and got thicker as it reached his shoulders.**

**His neck was a mass of muscle and fur leading up to his enormous head, which had a snout as long as my arm, snotty nostrils with a gleaming brass ring, cruel black eyes, and horns—enormous black-and-white horns with points you just couldn't get from an electric sharpener.**

"At a time like this? Really Percy? You decide to joke NOW?" Nico groaned.

**I recognized the monster, all right. He had been in one of the first stories Mr. Brunner told us. But he couldn't be real.**

**I blinked the rain out of my eyes. "That's—"**

**"Pasiphae's son," my mother said.**

"Smart woman! You never want to invoke the power of a name!" Agreed Athena, seeming to forget who it was she was complimenting.

Annabeth grinned at her mother, looked like she was not the only one who loved Sally Jackson.

**"I wish I'd known how badly they want to kill you."**

**"But he's the Min—"**

**"Don't say his name," she warned. "Names have power."**

**The pine tree was still way too far—a hundred yards uphill at least.**

"Just a little bit further boy!" Whimpered the sea god, covering his face with his hands whilst his son petted the back of his head reassuringly. Sneaking a glance at his half-brother, Apollo quickly pulled out a camera and took a photo of this scene before hiding it again and looking innocently at Piper. The girl quickly turned her laugh into a cough and continued reading.

**I glanced behind me again.**

**The bull-man hunched over our car, looking in the windows—or not looking, exactly. More like snuffling, nuzzling. I wasn't sure why he bothered, since we were only about fifty feet away.**

**"Food?" Grover moaned.**

**"Shhh," I told him.**

"yeah, like that'll work Prissy!" Snorted Clarisse, but even she was on the edge of her seat, wanting to know what happened next.

**"Mom, what's he doing? Doesn't he see us?"**

**"His sight and hearing are terrible," she said. "He goes by smell. But he'll figure out where we are soon enough."**

**As if on cue, the bull-man bellowed in rage. He picked up Gabe's Camaro by the torn roof, the chassis creaking and groaning. He raised the car over his head and threw it down the road. It slammed into the wet asphalt and skidded in a shower of sparks for about half a mile before coming to a stop. The gas tank exploded.**

_**Not a scratch,**_

No longer able to help themselves, Apollo and Hermes burst out laughing, earning some pretty dirt looks from all the other people in the room, and a death glare from Poseidon.

**I remembered Gabe saying.**

**Oops.**

Now the boy next to Piper, who had previously been so quiet that everyone had quite forgotten his existence, joined in the mirth of the other two, until the daughter of Aphrodite closed the book and slammed it down over his head.

**"Percy," my mom said. "When he sees us, he'll charge. Wait until the last second, then jump out of the way— directly sideways. He can't change directions very well once he's charging. Do you understand?"**

Both Athena's and Ares' mouths fell open at this. "A good plan if ever I heard one!" Nodded Hades.

**"How do you know all this?"**

**"I've been worried about an attack for a long time. I should have expected this. I was selfish, keeping you near me."**

"It's not selfishness dear, it is the instinct of a mother!" Demeter reassured the book.

**"Keeping me near you? But—"**

**Another bellow of rage, and the bull-man started tromping uphill.**

**He'd smelled us.**

**The pine tree was only a few more yards, but the hill was getting steeper and slicker, and Grover wasn't getting any lighter.**

**The bull-man closed in. Another few seconds and he'd be on top of us.**

**My mother must've been exhausted, but she shouldered Grover. "Go, Percy! Separate! Remember what I said."**

Not a sound could be heard in the throne room of Olympus in that second, not even a breath was taken.

**I didn't want to split up, but I had the feeling she was right—it was our only chance. I sprinted to the left, turned, and saw the creature bearing down on me. His black eyes glowed with hate. He reeked like rotten meat.**

**He lowered his head and charged, those razor-sharp horns aimed straight at my chest.**

**The fear in my stomach made me want to bolt, but that wouldn't work. I could never outrun this thing.**

**So I held my ground, and at the last moment, I jumped to the side.**

**The bull-man stormed past like a freight train, then bellowed with frustration and turned, but not toward me this time, toward my mother, who was setting Grover down in the grass.**

"MOMMY!" Screamed Baby Percy, struggling in Poseidon's arms as he tried to go help his mother in the book.

**We'd reached the crest of the hill. Down the other side I could see a valley, just as my mother had said, and the lights of a farmhouse glowing yellow through the rain. But that was half a mile away. We'd never make it.**

**The bull-man grunted, pawing the ground. He kept eyeing my mother, who was now retreating slowly downhill, back toward the road, trying to lead the monster away from Grover.**

Baby Percy burst into tears and Poseidon looked like he dearly wanted to do the same. If everyone in the room hadn't been holding their breath in anticipation, at least 2 of them (who, though obvious, will remain nameless) would have poked fun at this strange picture.

Hestia rested a soothing hand against her brother's shoulder, trying futilely to cheer him up.

**"Run, Percy!" she told me. "I can't go any farther. Run!" **

**But I just stood there, frozen in fear, as the monster charged her. She tried to sidestep, as she'd told me to do, but the monster had learned his lesson. His hand shot out and grabbed her by the neck as she tried to get away. He lifted her as she struggled, kicking and pummeling the air.**

**"Mom!"**

"MOMMY!" The heart breaking cry brought tears to the eyes of most of the people in the room. Annabeth longed to cross the room and comfort the baby form of her boyfriend, but something told her that this would not be appropriate right now.

**She caught my eyes, managed to choke out one last word: "Go!"**

**Then, with an angry roar, the monster closed his fists around my mother's neck, and she dissolved before my eyes, melting into light, a shimmering golden form, as if she were a holographic projection. A blinding flash, and she was simply ... gone.**

"What?" The surprised gasp swept round the throne room. Well this certainly was unexpected!

Poseidon lifted his head long enough to stare daggers at his older brother, before going about comforting his sobbing son.

**"No!"**

**Anger replaced my fear. Newfound strength burned in my limbs—the same rush of energy I'd gotten when Mrs. Dodds grew talons.**

**The bull-man bore down on Grover, who lay helpless in the grass. The monster hunched over, snuffling my best friend, as if he were about to lift Grover up and make him dissolve too.**

**I couldn't allow that.**

"And here comes Percy's noble, yet idiotic streak!" Commented Nico fondly.

**I stripped off my red rain jacket.**

**"Hey!" I screamed, waving the jacket, running to one side of the monster. "Hey, stupid! Ground beef!"**

**"Raaaarrrrr!" The monster turned toward me, shaking his meaty fists.**

**I had an idea—a stupid idea, but better than no idea at all.**

"Funnily enough, it's Percy's stupid plans that work more often than his other ones!" Annabeth felt the need to inform the room.

**I put my back to the big pine tree and waved my red jacket in front of the bull-man, thinking I'd jump out of the way at the last moment.**

**But it didn't happen like that.**

"Of course it won't!" Groaned the sea god.

**The bull-man charged too fast, his arms out to grab me whichever way I tried to dodge.**

**Time slowed down.**

**My legs tensed. I couldn't jump sideways, so I leaped straight up, kicking off from the creature's head, using it as a springboard, turning in midair, and landing on his neck.**

This time it was shock that silenced the room.

**How did I do that?**

**I didn't have time to figure it out. A millisecond later, the monster's head slammed into the tree and the impact nearly knocked my teeth out.**

**The bull-man staggered around, trying to shake me. I locked my arms around his horns to keep from being thrown. Thunder and lightning were still going strong. The rain was in my eyes. The smell of rotten meat burned my nostrils.**

Aphrodite and Artemis both gagged at this, looking faintly green.

**The monster shook himself around and bucked like a rodeo bull. He should have just backed up into the tree and smashed me flat, but I was starting to realize that this thing had only one gear: forward.**

**Meanwhile, Grover started groaning in the grass. I wanted to yell at him to shut up, but the way I was getting tossed around, if I opened my mouth I'd bite my own tongue off.**

**"Food!" Grover moaned.**

**The bull-man wheeled toward him, pawed the ground again, and got ready to charge. I thought about how he had squeezed the life out of my mother, made her disappear in a flash of light,** **and rage filled me like high-octane fuel. I got both hands around one horn and I pulled backward with all my might. The monster tensed, gave a surprised grunt, then—**_**snap!**_

"Uncle P, your son's a natural!" Came the shocked exclamation from Apollo.

**The bull-man screamed and flung me through the air. I landed flat on my back in the grass. My head smacked against a rock. When I sat up, my vision was blurry, but I had a horn in my hands, a ragged bone weapon the size of a knife.**

**The monster charged.**

**Without thinking, I rolled to one side and came up kneeling. As the monster barreled past, I drove the broken horn straight into his side, right up under his furry rib cage.**

**The bull-man roared in agony. He flailed, clawing at his chest, then began to disintegrate—not like my mother, in a flash of golden light, but like crumbling sand, blown away in chunks by the wind, the same way Mrs. Dodds had burst apart.**

Everyone in the room turned to look at the small boy whose face was still scrunched up and red from the crying. Their expressions ranged from shock to admiration, to gloating affection in Annabeth's case, something that her mother didn't fail to pick up on.

**The monster was gone.**

**The rain had stopped. The storm still rumbled, but only in the distance. I smelled like livestock and my knees were shaking. My head felt like it was splitting open. I was weak and scared and trembling with grief. I'd just seen my mother vanish. I wanted to lie down and cry, but there was Grover, needing my help, so I managed to haul him up and stagger down into the valley, toward the lights of the farm house. I was crying, calling for my mother, but I held on to Grover—I wasn't going to let him go.**

"Awww!" cooed most of the female listeners.

**The last thing I remember is collapsing on a wooden porch, looking up at a ceiling fan circling above me, moths flying around a yellow light, and the stern faces of a familiar-looking bearded man and a pretty girl, her blond hair curled like a princess's.**

"I bet that's one of my girls!" Aphrodite almost sang.

Annabeth blushed bright red at this.

**They both looked down at me, and the girl said, "He's the one. He must be."**

**"Silence, Annabeth,"**

Everyone in the room looked at Athena's daughter as her face went from a pale pink to deep crimson.

"He's the one. He must be." Quoted Travis in a fake falsetto voice that made all the demi-gods laugh and the poor girl's face go darker.

**the man said. "He's still conscious. Bring him inside."**

"And that's the end of the chapter!" Stated Piper matter of factly. With that, she passed the book on to the boy beside her.

For a few minutes, the whole room rested in a shocked silence as they thought back on the action that had occurred in the last chapter, but then Piper poked the boy in the ribs and, remembering what he was supposed to do, the boy stood up and bowed before sitting back down and finding the right page. Then he remembered something else and he hurriedly introduced himself.

"Will Solace, son of Apollo."

The sun god grinned at his child, waving for him to begin.

"**I Play Pinochle With a Horse."**


	6. I Play Pinochle With a Horse

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing but the bits that aren't in bold.

A quick apology for the late update, my computer broke and I only just got it fixed. Anyway, a great big thank you for everyone that has read and reviewed/ followed/ Favorited this story. I love you guys!

* * *

"**I Play Pinochle With a Horse,"**

And that was as far as Will got before he cracked up laughing. The others either rolled their eyes or tried to hide their smiles.

"You know," mused Annabeth, "Chiron is not going to be happy about this!"

"Pony!" Screeched baby Percy, making everyone in the room laugh in earnest.

**I had weird dreams full of barnyard animals. Most of them wanted to kill me. The rest wanted food.**

Will burst out laughing again while his father doubled over in his chair, clutching his side. The story probably wouldn't have progressed for a while, but thankfully, Piper stole the book, slapped the boy over the head with it, then handed it back.

He just glared at her, but continued reading none the less:

**I must've woken up several times, but what I heard and saw made no sense, so I just passed out again. I remember lying in a soft bed, being spoon-fed something that tasted like buttered popcorn, only it was pudding. The girl with curly blond hair hovered over me, smirking as she scraped drips off my chin with the spoon.**

At this, the toddler's eyes lit up and he struggled off of his dad's lap and began stumbling back over to Annabeth's seat, only to fall right into Hermes' leg.

"Mine now!" grinned the God, lifting the small boy onto his head.

"Weeeeee!" gurgled Percy.

**When she saw my eyes open, she asked, "What will happen at the summer solstice?"**

Annabeth flinched at this, drawing the eyes of everyone in the room.

"What _does_ happen at the summer solstice?" Queried the girl's mother, but she did not respond. To cover the silence, Will continued reading,

**I managed to croak, "What?"**

**She looked around, as if afraid someone would over hear. "What's going on? What was stolen? We've only got a few weeks!"**

Athena's eyes widened at this and she mouthed the words "lighting thief" looking at her daughter for confirmation. Sadly, Annabeth gave a slight nod and the goddess slumped back into her throne, fear apparent in her eyes. Fortunately, no one else seemed to notice this exchange.

**"I'm sorry," I mumbled, "I don't..."**

**Somebody knocked on the door, and the girl quickly filled my mouth with pudding.**

"Mmmmm Ambrosia!" Drooled Apollo, Hermes nodded along, seeming oblivious to the fact that this sent the child going back and forth. Not that baby Percy minded, in fact, he seemed to be enjoying this new ride, but it obviously worried Poseidon who seemed unable to move his eyes away from the two of them.

**The next time I woke up, the girl was gone.**

**A husky blond dude, like a surfer, stood in the corner of the bedroom keeping watch over me. He had blue eyes- at least a dozen of them- on his cheeks, his forehead, the backs of his hands.**

All the half bloods shuddered at this image and Rachel nodded "he creeps me out!"

**When I finally came around for good, there was nothing weird about my surroundings, except that they were nicer than I was used to. I was sitting in a deck chair on a huge porch, gazing across a meadow at green hills in the distance. The breeze smelled like strawberries. There was a blanket over my legs, a pillow behind my neck. All that was great, but my mouth felt like a scorpion had been using it for a nest. My tongue was dry and nasty and every one of my****teeth** **hurt.**

"Hmmm, maybe I should go visit him in the future…" Mumbled Apollo.

"You shall do no such thing!" snapped Zeus, "You know the rules!"

"Sorry Dad."

**On the table next to me was a tall drink. It looked like iced apple juice, with a green straw and a paper parasol stuck through a maraschino cherry.**

The sun god suddenly stopped looking abashed and went back to drooling over the image of food.

**My hand was so weak I almost dropped the glass once I got my fingers around it.**

**"Careful," a familiar voice said.**

**Grover was leaning against****the porch railing, looking like he hadn't slept in a week.**

"He hadn't!" Annabeth stated.

**Under one arm, he cradled a shoe box. He was wearing blue jeans, Converse hi-tops and a bright orange T-shirt that said CAMP HALF-BLOOD. Just plain old Grover, Not the goat boy.**

**So maybe I'd had a nightmare. Maybe my mom was okay. We were still on vacation, and we'd stopped here at this big house for some reason. And...**

"Ouch!" The sudden yelp coming from the thief god's direction drew everyone's attention and they found that the kid was pulling on is hair, looking like he was going to cry again. "Why you little!"

"Honestly, you are hopeless! Give the child here, I'll look after him!" Hera chided her son, but Percy seemed to have other ideas, instead of going to the goddess like a good kid, he screamed and hid behind the legs of Hades, making Hera fume. "How am I scarier than _him?_" she screeched.

No one in the room answered, they were all suddenly interested in the architecture of the throne room. The lord of the dead bent down to pet is nephew's head.

**"You saved my life," Grover said. "I... well, the least I could do ... I went back to the hill. I thought you might want this."**

**Reverently, he placed the shoe box in my lap.**

**Inside was a black-and-white bull's horn, the base jagged from being broken off, the tip splattered with dried blood. It hadn't been a nightmare.**

**"The Minotaur," I said.**

"Names hold power Seaweed Brain!" Murmured Annabeth, but her smile made her criticism entirely weightless.

**"Urm, Percy, it isn't a good idea-"**

**"That's what they call him in the Greek myths, isn't it?" I demanded. "The Minotaur. Half man, half bull."**

**Grover shifted uncomfortably. "You've been out for two days. How much do you remember?"**

**"My mom. Is she really ..."**

**He looked down.**

Grief crossed Poseidon's face and Percy buried his face in his uncle's robe, but then pulled it out again quickly with a quiet squeal of "Ghost!" Hades chuckled darkly.

**I stared across the meadow. There were groves of trees, a winding stream, acres of strawberries spread out under the blue sky. The valley was surrounded by rolling hills, and the tallest one, directly in front of us, was the one with the huge pine tree on top. Even that looked beautiful in the sunlight.**

**My mother was gone. The whole world should be black and cold. Nothing should look beautiful.**

"Aww." Cooed Demeter.

**"I'm sorry," Grover sniffled. "I'm a failure. I'm- I'm the worst satyr in the world."**

**He moaned, stomping his foot so hard it came off. I mean, the Converse hi-top came off. The inside was filled with Styrofoam, except for a hoof-shaped hole.**

**"Oh, Styx!" he mumbled.**

**Thunder rolled across the clear sky.**

**As he struggled to get his hoof back in the fake foot, I thought, Well, that settles it.**

**Grover was a satyr. I was ready to bet that if I shaved his curly brown hair, I'd find tiny horns on his head.**

"Oh, he wouldn't like that." Dionysus chuckled, seemingly enjoying the mental image, despite his comment.

**But I was too miserable to care that satyrs existed, or even minotaurs. All that meant was my mom really had been squeezed into nothingness, dissolved into yellow light.**

Hades started whistling and looking anywhere except for his younger brother who had gone back to glaring at him.

**I was alone. An orphan. I would have to live with ... Smelly Gabe?**

"Over my dead body!" Poseidon replied venomously.

"Are you offering?" Joked Hades, before he too, took an unscheduled shower.

**No. That would never happen. I would live on the streets first. I would pretend I was seventeen and join the army. I'd do something.**

"Believe me, that doesn't work!" Stated Nico, everyone in the room turned to look at him. "What? I had a troubled childhood!"

**Grover was still sniffling. The poor kid- poor goat, satyr, whatever- looked as if he expected to be hit.**

Dionysus chuckled darkly at this.

**I said, "It wasn't your fault."**

"Yes it was!" Zeus growled.

Thalia chucked her other shoe at him. "Dad, stop it! I'm running out of things to throw at you!"

Apollo looked at his little sister in awe, "At some point, I would really like to do that!" Then he shuddered as electricity ran through him. "No fair, you didn't do that to _her!_"

The lord of the gods just grinned evilly.

**"Yes, it was. I was supposed to**_**protect**_**you."**

**"Did my mother ask you to protect me?"**

**"No. But that's my job. I'm a keeper. At least... I was."**

**"But why ..." I suddenly felt dizzy, my vision swimming.**

**"Don't strain yourself," Grover said. "Here." He helped me hold my glass and put the straw to my lips.**

**I recoiled at the taste, because I was expecting apple juice. It wasn't that at all. It was chocolate-chip cookies. Liquid cookies.**

The smell of said cookies suddenly drifted around the room and everyone turned to gaze at the god of war in shock. Ares just shrugged, inhaling the food, "I'm hungry!"

**And not just any cookies- my mom's homemade blue chocolate-chip cookies, buttery and hot, with the chips still melting. Drinking it, my whole body felt warm and good, full of energy. My grief didn't go away, but I felt as if my mom had just brushed her hand against my cheek, given me a cookie the way she used to when I was small, and told me everything was going to be okay.**

"Such a good mother!" Demeter stated looking at her brother. Poseidon just looked proud, making all the females in the room go "Aww."

**Before I knew it, I'd drained the glass. I stared into it, sure I'd just had a warm drink, but the ice cubes hadn't even melted.**

**"Was it good?" Grover asked.**

**I nodded.**

**"What did it taste like?" He sounded so wistful, I felt guilty.**

**"Sorry," I said. "I should've let you taste."**

"I wish you had." Zeus said, but then his brooding look turned to one of shock when he turned towards his youngest daughter. "You just electrocuted me!"

Everyone in the room looked at Thalia in shock, she on the other hand, just shrugged and, in an icy voice, told her father "Well, if you will threaten my friend!"

**His eyes got wide. "No! That's not what I meant. I just... wondered."**

**"Chocolate-chip cookies," I said. "My mom's. Homemade."**

**He sighed. "And how do you feel?"**

**"Like I could throw Nancy Bobofit a hundred yards."**

Ares' eyes glinted in the light and he chuckled. "DO IT!" He breathed.

Athena rolled her eyes. "The girl is several hundred miles away from him brother! " She reminded him.

**"That's good," he said. "That's good. I don't think you could risk drinking any more of that stuff"**

**"What do you mean?"**

"That you will burst into flames if you try!" Sighed Dionysus happily, before he noticed his uncles glare and decided that cowering in his chair was much more fun.

**He took the empty glass from me gingerly, as if it were dynamite, and set it back on the table. "Come on. Chiron and Mr. D are waiting."**

"Mr D?" Asked Zeus skeptically. Dionysus just shrugged.

"Well, _this_ should be interesting." Apollo grinned.

**The porch wrapped all the way around the farmhouse.**

**My legs felt wobbly, trying to walk that far. Grover offered to carry the Minotaur horn, but I held on to it. I'd paid for that souvenir the hard way. I wasn't going to let it go.**

"Yes, that's a good idea, especially with _his _kids at that camp!" Laughed Poseidon. Hermes just looked affronted.

"My kids wouldn't do that! Would you boys?"

"Yes!" Called the brothers, making their father smile.

"Good, good, I was just making sure!"

**As we came around the opposite end of the house, I caught my breath.**

"It really is pretty." Rachel sighed dreamily, while the half-bloods nodded enthusiastically.

**We must've been on the north shore of Long Island, because on this side of the house, the valley marched all the way up to the water, which glittered about a mile in the distance. Between here and there, I simply couldn't process everything I was seeing. The landscape was dotted with buildings that looked like ancient Greek architecture: an open-air pavilion, an amphitheater, a circular arena; except that they all looked brand new, their white marble columns sparkling in the sun. In a nearby sandpit, a dozen high school-age kids and satyrs played volleyball. Canoes glided across a small lake. Kids in bright orange T-shirts like Grover's were chasing each other around a cluster of cabins nestled in the woods. Some shot targets at an archery range. Others rode horses down a wooded trail, and, unless I was hallucinating, some of their horses had wings.**

"Nice place!" whistled Hades

"Prison!" Dionysus corrected.

The lord of the dead's eyes flashed. "Do you want to do an exchange then nephew? How about you try working in Tartarus for a few years?"

"Eeeeer, I mean, it's a… lovely place!" The wine god quickly corrected himself, while his family just laughed.

**Down at the end of the porch, two men sat across from each other at a card table. The blond-haired girl who'd spoon-fed me popcorn-flavored pudding was leaning on the porch rail next to them.**

**The man facing me was small, but porky. He had a red nose, big watery eyes, and curly hair so black it was almost purple. He looked like those paintings of baby angels- what do you call them, hubbubs? No, cherubs. That's it. He looked like a cherub who'd turned middle-aged in a trailer park.**

Dionysus turned to glare at Baby Percy who was now amusing himself by bouncing up and down on his uncle's knee (Hades having picked him up after insulting his nephew the last time) "When he's older, I am going to kill that brat!" He snarled.

"What for? Telling the truth?" Laughed Apollo, but he soon stopped when an evil looking grape vine made a lunge for his throat.

**He wore a tiger-pattern Hawaiian shirt, and he would've fit right in at one of Gabe's poker parties,**

"Um, I'm pretty sure that that's an insult brother." Aphrodite chimed in happily.

"The worst one yet!" Her husband agreed.

Dionysus just scowled and glared at the floor, conscious of Poseidon's eyes on him.

**except I got the feeling this guy could've out-gambled even my step father.**

"Not quite!" Cackled Hermes, "I beat him all the time!"

"That's cause you always cheat!" Stated Dionysus, but his protest sounded more like the whining of a bratty kid.

**"That's Mr. D," Grover murmured to me. "He's the camp director. Be polite. The girl, that's Annabeth Chase.**

"Someone you _will _stay away from sea rat!" scowled Athena, but her expression turned shrewd as she noticed her daughter shifting uneasily in her chair.

Annabeth sent a "help" look at Will, who quickly resumed reading.

**She's just a camper, but she's been here longer than just about anybody. And you already know Chiron..."**

**He pointed at the guy whose back was to me.**

**First, I realized he was sitting in the wheelchair. Then I recognized the tweed jacket, the thinning brown hair, the scraggly beard.**

**"Mr. Brunner!" I cried.**

**The Latin teacher turned and smiled at me. His eyes had that mischievous glint they sometimes got in class when he pulled a pop quiz and made all the multiple choice answers**_**B**_**.**

"I REALLY WANT HIM AS MY TEACHER!" Shouted Nico, making everyone jump. Everyone looked at him strangely and he grinned, "Whenever I don't know the answers to a pop quiz, I always answer B." He explained. Annabeth and her mother looked at the boy in disgust, the others just laughed.

**"Ah, good, Percy," he said. "Now we have four for pinochle."**

**He offered me a chair to the right of Mr. D, who looked at me with bloodshot eyes and heaved a great sigh. "Oh, I suppose I must say it. Welcome to Camp Half-Blood. There. Now, don't expect me to be glad to see you."**

"Nice welcome." Remarked Poseidon dryly. Dionysus gulped, praying that his future self wouldn't do anything to get himself killed.

**"Uh, thanks." I scooted a little farther away from him because,**_**if**_**there was one thing I had learned from living with Gabe, it was how to tell when an adult has been hitting the happy juice. If Mr. D was a stranger to alcohol, I was a satyr.**

Everyone laughed at this.

**"Annabeth?" Mr. Brunner called to the blond girl.**

**She came forward and Mr. Brunner introduced us. "This young lady nursed you back to health, Percy.**

Aphrodite's eyes flashed at the new idea that came to her and she grinned at the daughter of Athena who, to the goddess' great surprise, smiled back.

**Annabeth, my dear, why don't you go check on Percy's bunk? We'll be putting him in cabin eleven for now."**

"Ah, my cabin." Sighed Hermes fondly. The brothers just flinched and muttered "Yay, another room mate."

**Annabeth said, "Sure, Chiron."**

**She was probably my age, maybe a couple of inches taller, and a whole lot more athletic looking. With her deep tan and her curly blond hair, she was almost exactly what I thought a stereotypical California girl would look like, except her eyes ruined the image.**

"WHAT IS WRONG WITH MY EYES?" burst out Annabeth.

**They were startling gray, like storm clouds; pretty, but intimidating,**

"Oh." She muttered, lowering her head as her cheeks flamed in embarrassment.

**too, as if she were analyzing the best way to take me down in a fight.**

"I was." Admitted Annabeth guiltily.

**She glanced at the minotaur horn in my hands, then back at me. I imagined she was going to say,**_**You killed a minotaur!**_**or**_**Wow, you're so awesome!**_**or something like that.**

"This kid seems really arrogant?" The boy under the eagle almost asked.

"He is, Jason." Called out Nico.

"But that's why we love him!" Finished Thalia.

**Instead she said, "You drool when you sleep."**

Laughter filled the throne room for that second, even Poseidon joined in. baby Percy began snuggling up to his uncle, yawning.

**Then she sprinted off down the lawn, her blond hair flying behind her.**

"Someone's in love!" Aphrodite sang. Annabeth went bright red, hiding her face in the dolphin teddy while Poseidon and His niece spluttered indignantly.

"You are to stay away from that brat Annabeth!" Athena lectured her daughter while the half-bloods snickered.

**"So," I said, anxious to change the subject. "You, uh, work here, Mr. Brunner?"**

**"Not Mr. Brunner," the ex-Mr. Brunner said. "I'm afraid that was a pseudonym. You may call me Chiron."**

**"Okay." Totally confused, I looked at the director. "And Mr. D ... does that stand for something?"**

"Brother, can I have my son back please?" Asked Poseidon.

"Why now uncle P?" Called out Hermes.

"Because I believe that he is going to get himself killed before long!" Explained the sea god, reclaiming his child who curled up to him, snuggling into his father's shirt and falling asleep.

"Aw, that looks so cute!" Cooed Artemis, making everyone look at her in surprise. The goddess' face flushed and she waved Will on.

**Mr. D stopped shuffling the cards. He looked at me like I'd just belched loudly. "Young man, names are powerful things. You don't just go around using them for no reason."**

"You upset cause he didn't recognizes you?" Asked Apollo jokingly, but he did not puc the matter however, after all, the vine was back.

**"Oh. Right. Sorry."**

**"I must say, Percy," Chiron-Brunner broke in, "I'm glad to see you alive. It's been a long time since I've made a house call to a potential camper. I'd hate to think I've wasted my time."**

**"House call?"**

**"My year at Yancy Academy, to instruct you. We have satyrs at most schools, of course, keeping a lookout. But Grover alerted me as soon as he met you. He sensed you were something special, so I decided to come upstate. I convinced the other Latin teacher to ... ah, take a leave of absence."**

"Oh, I'd love to see how he convinced the other teacher!" Ares stated, leaning forward I his chair eagerly.

**I tried to remember the beginning of the school year. It seemed like so long ago, but I did have a fuzzy memory of there being another Latin teacher my first week at Yancy. Then, without explanation, he had disappeared and Mr. Brunner had taken the class.**

**"You came to Yancy just to teach me?" I asked.**

**Chiron nodded. "Honestly, I wasn't sure about you at first.**

**We contacted your mother, let her know we were keeping an eye on you in case you were ready for Camp Half-Blood. But you still had so much to learn. Nevertheless, you made it here alive, and that's always the first test."**

**"Grover," Mr. D said impatiently, "are you playing or not?"**

**"Yes, sir!" Grover trembled as he took the fourth chair, though I didn't know why he should be so afraid of a pudgy little man in a tiger-print Hawaiian shirt.**

"Seriously nephew, what do you do to those poor satyrs?" Chided Hestia softly.

Dionysus looked at the floor guiltily, no on liked upsetting their gentle aunt. "Sorry." He murmured.

**"You**_**do**_**know how to play pinochle?" Mr. D eyed me suspiciously.**

**"I'm afraid not," I said.**

**"I'm afraid not,**_**sir**_**," he said.**

**"Sir," I repeated. I was liking the camp director less and less.**

**"Well," he told me, "it is, along with gladiator fighting and Pac-Man, one of the greatest games ever invented by humans. I would expect all**_**civilized**_**young men to know the rules."**

**"I'm sure the boy can learn," Chiron said.**

**"Please," I said, "what is this place? What am I doing here? Mr. Brun-Chiron, why would you go to Yancy Academy just to teach me?"**

**Mr. D snorted. "I asked the same question."**

"Because you are special!" Poseidon clucked tickling the sleeping baby under the chin and making Ares look as though he was going to be sick. Demeter's eyes shone with tears, now this was_ proper_ parenting!

**The camp director dealt the cards. Grover flinched every time one landed in his pile.**

**Chiron smiled at me sympathetically, the way he used to in Latin class, as if to let me know that no matter what my average was,**_**I**_**was his star student. He expected**_**me**_**to have the right answer.**

**"Percy," he said. "Did your mother tell you nothing?'**

**"She said ..." I remembered her sad eyes, looking out over the sea. "She told me she was afraid to send me here, even though my father had wanted her to. She said that once I was here, I probably couldn't leave. She wanted to keep me close to her."**

"Awww." Demeter cooed.

**"Typical," Mr. D said. "That's how they usually get killed. Young man, are you bidding or not?"**

**"What?" I asked.**

**He explained, impatiently, how you bid in pinochle, and so I did.**

**"I'm afraid there's too much to tell," Chiron said. "I'm afraid our usual orientation film won't be sufficient."**

"Wait, you mean he never saw the film?" Will cut himself off looking flabbergasted. "We really need to…"

"On it!" The two sons of Hermes nodded, a strange glint in their eyes that made Poseidon hug his son closer protectively.

**"Orientation film?" I asked.**

**"No," Chiron decided. "Well, Percy. You know your friend Grover is a satyr. You know-" he pointed to the horn in the shoe box- "that you have killed the Minotaur. No small feat, either, lad. What you may not know is that great powers are at work in your life. Gods- the forces you call the Greek gods- are very much alive."**

"Too right we are!" Apollo cheered.

**I stared at the others around the table.**

**I waited for somebody to yell,**_**Not!**_**But all I got was Mr. D yelling, "Oh, a royal marriage. Trick! Trick!" He cackled as he tallied up his points.**

**"Mr. D," Grover asked timidly, "if you're not going to eat it, could I have your Diet Coke can?"**

**"Eh? Oh, all right."**

"Satyrs and their weird taste in food!" Chuckled Apollo.

"Like ketchup and ambrosia sandwiches are any better brother!" Scolded Artemis.

"Hey, Ketchup is the most nutritious condiment known to man!"

"Yes, but dad, that's just gross!" Will spoke up, shuddering at the though.

"Are you really my son?" Joked Apollo, clutching at his chest.

Will just rolled his eyes and continued reading.

**Grover bit a huge shard out of the empty aluminum can and chewed it mournfully.**

**"Wait," I told Chiron. "You're telling me there's such a thing as god."**

**"Well, now," Chiron said. "God- capital**_**G**_**, God. That's a different matter altogether. We shan't deal with the metaphysical."**

**"Metaphysical? But you were just talking about-"**

**"Ah, gods, plural, as in, great beings that control the forces of nature and human endeavors: the immortal gods of Olympus. That's a smaller matter."**

"HEY!" Yelled the gods, while their children just doubled up laughing.

**"Smaller?"**

**"Yes, quite. The gods we discussed in Latin class."**

**"Zeus," I said. "Hera. Apollo. You mean them."**

"He mentions me but not Uncle P!" Gloated Apollo, before he was doused in half the pacific.

**And there it was again, distant thunder on a cloud less day.**

**"Young man," said Mr. D, "I would really be less casual about throwing those names around, if I were you."**

**"But they're stories," I said. "They're- myths, to explain lightning and the seasons and stuff. They're what people believed before there was science."**

"Wow, your son really seems to have a gift for annoying us!" Athena started.

"Oh you have no idea!" Thalia and Annabeth both sighed.

**"Science!" Mr. D scoffed. "And tell me, Perseus Jackson"**

"Why is he named after one of _my _sons?" Whined Zeus

"Well, maybe if you didn't have so many children, there would be a name that _didn't _belong to one of them!" Came Hera's frosty reply.

**-I flinched when he said my real name, which I never told anybody- "what will people think of your 'science' two thousand years from now?" Mr. D continued. "Hmm? They will call it primitive mumbo jumbo. That's what. Oh, I love mortals- they have absolutely no sense of perspective. They think they've come**_**so-o-o**_**far. And have they, Chiron? Look at this boy and tell me."**

"What is _that_ suppose to mean?" Poseidon growled

"That your son is an idiot." Athena stated simply.

**I wasn't liking Mr. D much,** **but there was something about the way he called me mortal, as if... he wasn't.**

"And here comes super dense, in denial Percy!" Commented Nico.

**It was enough to put a lump in my throat, to suggest why Grover was dutifully minding his cards, chewing his soda can, and keeping his mouth shut.**

**"Percy," Chiron said, "you may choose to believe or not, but the fact is that**_**immortal**_**means immortal. Can you imagine that for a moment, never dying? Never fading? Existing, just as you are, for all time?"**

**I was about to answer, off the top of my head, that it sounded like a pretty good deal, but the tone of Chiron's voice made me hesitate.**

**"You mean, whether people believed in you or not," I said.**

**"Exactly," Chiron agreed. "If you were a god, how would you like being called a myth, an old story to explain lightning?**

"Oh, but its fun to target those who say that." Zeus growled his eyes flashing evilly once again. To everyone's surprise, Thalia nodded along eagerly.

**What if I told you, Perseus Jackson, that someday people would call**_**you**_**a myth, just created to explain how little boys can get over losing their mothers?"**

The room shook as Poseidon growled. To add insult to injury, baby Percy stirred restlessly in his sleep calling out "Mommy?" before clutching a fist full of his father's Hawaiian shirt and sighing.

For a few minutes, the throne room sat in silence.

**My heart pounded. He was trying to make me angry for some reason, but I wasn't going to let him. I said, "I wouldn't like it. But I don't believe in gods."**

**"Oh, you'd better," Mr. D murmured. "Before one of them incinerates you."**

"Touch him, and I'll gut you like a fish" Poseidon stated matter of factly to no one in particular.

Dionysus gulped and turned white.

**Grover said, "P-please, sir. He's just lost his mother. He's in shock."**

**"A lucky thing, too," Mr. D grumbled, playing a card. "Bad enough I'm confined to this miserable job, working with boys who don't even believe.'"**

**He waved his hand and a goblet appeared on the table, as if the sunlight had bent, momentarily, and woven the air into glass. The goblet filled itself with red wine.**

"Dionysus…" Zeus Glared at his son, who was no beginning to look sick.

"Sorry?"

**My jaw dropped, but Chiron hardly looked up.**

**"Mr. D," he warned, "your restrictions."**

**Mr. D looked at the wine and feigned surprise.**

**"Dear me." He looked at the sky and yelled, "Old habits! Sorry!"**

**More thunder.**

"Liar!" Sang Apollo.

**Mr. D waved his hand again, and the wineglass changed into a fresh can of Diet Coke. He sighed unhappily, popped the top of the soda, and went back to his card game.**

**Chiron winked at me. "Mr. D offended his father a while back, took a fancy to a wood nymph who had been declared off-limits."**

**"A wood nymph," I repeated, still staring at the Diet Coke can like it was from outer space.**

**"Yes," Mr. D confessed. "Father loves to punish me.**

"Well, maybe if you tried _behaving_ yourself…"

"But father, you know that's impossible!" Claimed Artemis. Dionysus just glared at her.

"Thanks!"

"Any time!"

**The first time, Prohibition. Ghastly! Absolutely horrid ten years! The second time- well, she really was pretty, and I couldn't stay away- the second time, he sent me here. Half-Blood Hill. Summer camp for brats like you. 'Be a better influence,' he told me. 'Work with youths rather than tearing them down.' Ha.' Absolutely unfair."**

**Mr. D sounded about six years old, like a pouting little kid.**

This got a laugh from everyone in the room apart from the mentioned god who just looked sulky, further proving the boy's point.

**"And ..." I stammered, "your father is ..."**

_**"Di immortales,**_**Chiron," Mr. D said. "I thought you taught this boy the basics. My father is Zeus, of course."**

**I ran through D names from Greek mythology. Wine. The skin of a tiger. The satyrs that all seemed to work here. The way Grover cringed, as if Mr. D were his master.**

**"You're Dionysus," I said. "The god of wine."**

"Wow, give the boy a prize!" Grouched Dionysus.

**Mr. D rolled his eyes. "What do they say, these days, Grover? Do the children say, 'Well, duh!'?"**

**"Y-yes, Mr. D."**

**"Then, well, duh! Percy Jackson. Did you think I was Aphrodite, perhaps?"**

The throne room echoed with laughter as Aphrodite flipped her hair. The only response she gave was "You wish!"

**"You're a god."**

**"Yes, child."**

**"A god. You."**

"Yes boy, we all ask ourselves that." Poseidon chuckled, looking fondly at the book and the sleeping child in his arms.

**He turned to look at me straight on, and I saw a kind of purplish fire in his eyes, a hint that this whiny, plump little man was only showing me the tiniest bit of his true nature. I saw visions of grape vines choking unbelievers to death, drunken warriors insane with battle lust, sailors screaming as their hands turned to flippers, their faces elongating into dolphin snouts. I knew that if I pushed him, Mr. D would show me worse things. He would plant a disease in my brain that would leave me wearing a strait-jacket in a rubber room for the rest of my life.**

"Ugh, those rooms are really _not _fun!" Shuddered Apollo.

"Why, dear brother, it sounds almost as if you have experienced this!" Artemis called out sweetly, Apollo just glared at her, making the others in the room wonder just what had happened between them.

**"Would you like to test me, child?" he said quietly.**

**"No. No, sir."**

**The fire died a little. He turned back to his card game. "I believe I win."**

"Oh no you don't!" Chuckled Hermes, a manic glint in his eyes. Dionysus pouted at his brother pleadingly.

**"Not quite, Mr. D," Chiron said. He set down a straight, tallied the points, and said, "The game goes to me."**

**I thought Mr. D was going to vaporize Chiron right out of his wheelchair, but he just sighed through his nose, as if he were used to being beaten by the Latin teacher.**

"Unfortunately, I am. That guy can really gamble!"

"No, you just really suck at it!" Piped up Rachel, but then she looked like she really regretted it when the god turned on her.

"_What _did you say, mor…"

"Hey, my son is trying to_ read _here! And keep your hands of my oracle!" Piped up Apollo, winking at her.

**He got up, and Grover rose, too.**

**"I'm tired," Mr. D said. "I believe I'll take a nap before the sing-along tonight. But first, Grover, we need to talk,**_**again,**_**about your less-than-perfect performance on this assignment."**

"Good boy, Dionysus." Zeus muttered, and then he hissed looking at his daughter. "Will you _stop _doing that!"

Thalia just grinned sweetly "Nope!"

**Grover's face beaded with sweat. "Y-yes, sir."**

**Mr. D turned to me. "Cabin eleven, Percy Jackson. And mind your manners."**

**He swept into the farmhouse, Grover following miserably.**

**"Will Grover be okay?" I asked Chiron.**

**Chiron nodded, though he looked a bit troubled. "Old Dionysus isn't really mad. He just hates his job.**

"So would you if you were in my position!" Dionysus interjected sounding rather petulant to say the least.

**He's been ... ah, grounded, I guess you would say, and he can't stand waiting another century before he's allowed to go back to Olympus."**

"IS IT SO WRONG TO MISS MY WIFE?" The god exploded.

"Of course not honey." Hera called out while Aphrodite chuckled.

**"Mount Olympus," I said. "You're telling me there really is a palace there?"**

**"Well now, there's Mount Olympus in Greece. And then there's the home of the gods, the convergence point of their powers, which did indeed used to be on Mount Olympus. It's still called Mount Olympus, out of respect to the old ways, but the palace moves, Percy, just as the gods do."**

"So we have to listen to this?" Ares whined.

"Yes!" Hephaestus decreed happily.

**"You mean the Greek gods are here? Like ... in**_**America**_**?"**

**"Well, certainly. The gods move with the heart of the West."**

**"The what?"**

**"Come now, Percy. What you call 'Western civilization.' Do you think it's just an abstract concept? No, it's a living force. A collective consciousness that has burned bright for thousands of years. The gods are part of it. You might even say they are the source of it, or at least, they are tied so tightly to it that they couldn't possibly fade, not unless all of Western civilization were obliterated. The fire started in Greece. Then, as you well know- or as I hope you know, since you passed my course- the heart of the fire moved to Rome, and so did the gods. Oh, different names, perhaps- Jupiter for Zeus, Venus for Aphrodite, and so on- but the same forces, the same gods."**

Jason stiffened at this, not that any of the gods noticed, they were all too busy trying to remain in their Greek forms.

**"And then they died."**

"IDIOT!" Yelled Athena, ignoring the squid that appeared on her lap "Does the word _Immortal _mean nothing to you?"

"Oh, give him a break, it's not like your kids do any better when _they _first get to camp!" Poseidon countered.

"Erm actually…"

"NOT NOW DIONYSUS!" The yelled in unison.

**"Died? No. Did the West die? The gods simply moved, to Germany, to France, to Spain, for a while. Wherever the flame was brightest, the gods were there. They spent several centuries in England.**

"British chicks!" Drooled Hermes.

"Boys!" spat out Artemis, but then she relented "I gained some fine hunters over there!"

**All you need to do is look at the architecture.**

**People do not forget the gods. Every place they've ruled, for the last three thousand years, you can see them in paintings, in statues, on the most important buildings. And yes, Percy, of course they are now in your United States. Look at your symbol, the eagle of Zeus. Look at the statue of Prometheus in Rockefeller Center, the Greek facades of your government buildings in Washington. I defy you to find any American city where the Olympians are not prominently displayed in multiple places. Like it or not- and believe me, plenty of people weren't very fond of Rome, either- America is now the heart of the flame. It is the great power of the West. And so Olympus is here. And we are here."**

**It was all too much, especially the fact that**_**I**_**seemed to be included in Chiron's**_**we,**_**as if I were part of some club.**

**"Who are you, Chiron? Who ... who am I?"**

"A hero!" Chimed most of the kids from camp half-blood in the room, then Nico added "You have 3500 attack power, plus…"

"Okay kid, we get it!" Thalia interrupted her cousin, rolling her eyes while the gods just looked confused.

**Chiron smiled. He shifted his weight as if he were going to get up out of his wheelchair, but I knew that was impossible. He was paralyzed from the waist down.**

**"Who are you?" he mused. "Well, that's the question we all want answered, isn't it? But for now, we should get you a bunk in cabin eleven. There will be new friends to meet. And plenty of time for lessons tomorrow. Besides, there will be s'mores at the campfire tonight, and I simply adore chocolate."**

"Could we have some s'mores dad?!" Hermes practically begged while Apollo pouted.

"No boys, they are not good for you!" Hera answered.

"I wasn't talking to you!" Spat Hermes, not even attempting to hide the venom in his voice.

**And then he did rise from his wheelchair. But there was something odd about the way he did it. His blanket fell away from his legs, but the legs didn't move. His waist kept getting longer, rising above his belt. At first, I thought he was wearing very long, white velvet underwear, but as he kept rising out of the chair, taller than any man, I realized that the velvet underwear wasn't underwear; it was the front of an animal, muscle and sinew under coarse white fur. And the wheelchair wasn't a chair. It was some kind of container, an enormous box on wheels, and it must've been magic, because there's no way it could've held all of him. A leg came out, long and knobby-kneed, with a huge polished hoof. Then another front leg, then hindquarters, and then the box was empty, nothing but a metal shell with a couple of fake human legs attached.**

**I stared at the horse who had just sprung from the wheelchair: a huge white stallion. But where its neck should be was the upper body of my Latin teacher, smoothly grafted to the horse's trunk.**

**"What a relief," the centaur said. "I'd been cooped up in there so long, my fetlocks had fallen asleep. Now, come, Percy Jackson. Let's meet the other campers."**

"And that's the end of the chapter." Concluded Will with a bow before he handed it over to the girl beside him.

Without waiting, she stood, bowed and said. "My name's Katie Gardener, Daughter of Demeter." At this, the goddess' face lit up and she instantly started piling questions onto the poor girl.

"Oh, deary, have you eaten enough cereal? You look pale, do you spend enough time outside? When was the last time you worked on a farm?..."

To stop the endless interrogation, the girl hastily read:

**"I Become Supreme Lord of the Bathroom."**


	7. I Become Supreme Lord of the Bathroom

**"I Become Supreme Lord of the Bathroom,"**

Katie began, before a loud groan from the daughter of Ares cut her off.

"Anything you would like to share with the class Clarisse?" Asked Annabeth sweetly, receiving a glare for her efforts and laughter from Will.

"I remember this!"

"Shut it lyre boy!" Came her reply, making Apollo look between them quizzically.

**Once I got over the fact that my Latin teacher was a horse,**

"A word from the wise." Joked Nico, "Never say that to his face, unless you want a death glare that is _really _creepy!"

"Says the walking corpse?" Asked Piper with a sly smile.

"Hey, I'm not dead!"

"You were called "the ghost king"" Travis pointed out helpfully.

And so on the conversation went, making all of the Olympians shared confused glances, until Annabeth finally snapped "We are _not _going into this _now! _Read Will!"

"But Katie's the one reading!"

"Oh yeah…" The blush on her face was unmistakable.

**we had a nice tour, though I was careful not to walk behind him. I'd done pooper-scooper patrol in****the Macy's Thanksgiving** **Day Parade a few times, and, I'm sorry, I did not trust Chiron's back end the way I trusted his front.**

Laughter could be heard even by the lesser gods in the city below at this line.

**We passed the volleyball pit. Several of the campers nudged each other. One pointed to the minotaur horn I was carrying. Another said, "That's**_**him**_**."**

"You know, I think that was me…" Mused Will.

"No it wasn't." Chimed in Travis "You were with us at the Aphrodite cabin, helping me and Connor… clean it."

"Oh yeah." The three of them shared an amused, if slightly guilty, look that made the love goddess glare at them and their fathers' faces shine with pride.

**Most of the campers were older than me. Their satyr friends were bigger than Grover, all of them trotting around in orange CAMP HALF-BLOOD T-shirts, with nothing else to cover their bare shaggy hindquarters. I wasn't normally shy, but the way they stared at me made me uncomfortable. I felt like they were expecting me to do a flip or something.**

"Now that would have been cool!" Cheered Connor.

**I looked back at the farmhouse. It was a lot bigger than I'd realized—four stories tall, sky blue with white trim, like an upscale seaside resort. I was checking out the brass eagle weather vane** **on top when something caught my eye, a shadow in the uppermost window of the attic gable. Something had moved the curtain, just for a second, and I got the distinct impression I was being watched.**

"Ah, I bet that's my dear oracle." Apollo sighed dreamily.

"No offence dad, but she was just creepy!"

"Hey!"

"Sorry Rachel, I didn't mean you!"

**"What's up there?" I asked Chiron.**

**He looked where I was pointing, and his smile faded. "Just the attic."**

**"Somebody lives there?"**

**"No," he said with finality. "Not a single living thing."**

"Why did she go so long without switching bodies?" Mused Apollo.

**I got the feeling he was being truthful. But I was also sure something had moved that curtain.**

**"Come along, Percy," Chiron said, his lighthearted tone now a little forced. "Lots to see."**

**We walked through the strawberry fields, where campers were picking bushels of berries while a satyr played a tune on a reed pipe.**

**Chiron told me the camp grew a nice crop for export to New York restaurants and Mount Olympus. "It pays our expenses," he explained. "And the strawberries take almost no effort."**

"I love strawberries!" Stated Demeter, and suddenly, everyone had the image in their heads that they were in the middle of a strawberry patch, but after a second, the image faded and Katie kept on reading as if her mother, _hadn't _just done the strangest thing she had ever seen in her life…

**He said Mr. D had this effect on fruit-bearing plants: they just went crazy when he was around. It worked best with wine grapes, but Mr. D was restricted from growing those, so they grew strawberries instead.**

"Although I'm not criticizing your choice, why don't you just grow normal grapes?" Demeter asked thoughtfully.

"Too painful, and Castor is allergic to them." Dionysus sighed sadly, not noticing the way that some of the half-bloods shifted uneasily at the mention of the boy's name.

**I watched the satyr playing his pipe. His music was causing lines of bugs to leave the strawberry patch in every direction, like refugees fleeing a fire. I wondered if Grover could work that kind of magic with music.**

**I wondered if he was still inside the farmhouse, getting chewed out by Mr. D.**

**"Grover won't get in too much trouble, will he?" I asked Chiron. "I mean ... he was a good protector. Really."**

Zeus looked about to say something, but he just shuddered and turned to glare at his youngest daughter. Thalia just leant back in her chair and began whistling "Rain drops keep falling on my head." Trying to avoid yet another argument, Katie Quickly read on.

**Chiron sighed. He shed his tweed jacket and draped it over his horses back like a saddle. "Grover has big dreams, Percy. Perhaps bigger than are reasonable.** **To reach his goal, he must first demonstrate great courage by succeeding as a keeper, finding a new camper and bringing him safely to Half-Blood Hill."**

**"But he did that!"**

**"I might agree with you," Chiron said. "But it is not my place to judge. Dionysus and the Council of Cloven Elders must decide. I'm afraid they might not see this assignment as a success. After all, Grover lost you in New York. Then there's the unfortunate ... ah ... fate of your mother. And the fact that Grover was unconscious when you dragged him over the property line. The council might question whether this shows any courage on Grover's part."**

Thalia eyed her father evilly; the lord of the sky wisely chose to keep his mouth shut.

**I wanted to protest. None of what happened was Grover's fault. I also felt really, really guilty. If I hadn't given Grover the slip at the bus station, he might not have gotten in trouble.**

**"He'll get a second chance, won't he?"**

"Unfortunately, that was his second chance seaweed brain." Annabeth sighed, shifting uneasily. The daughter of Zeus reached across the empty chair and the two girls comforted each other.

**Chiron winced. "I'm afraid that**_**was**___**Grover's second chance, Percy. The council was not anxious to give him another, either, after what happened the first time, five years ago.**

"So this is 5 years in the future?" Athena murmured, her mind spinning.

"So that means, tonight is the day that I…" Thalia broke off, looking shocked. No one dared say anything after that, they were all conscious of Zeus' killing intent directed at his oldest brother. It was with a timid voice that Katie read on.

**Olympus knows, I advised him to wait longer before trying again. He's still so small for his age..."**

**"How old is he?"**

**"Oh, twenty-eight."**

**"What! And he's in sixth grade?"**

"Ah, the curse of being a satyr!" Dionysus chuckled happily.

**"Satyrs mature half as fast as humans, Percy. Grover has been the equivalent of a middle school student for the past six years."**

**"That's horrible."**

"Agreed!" Hermes, Apollo and their children stated in unison.

**"Quite," Chiron agreed. "At any rate, Grover is a late bloomer, even by satyr standards, and not yet very accomplished at woodland magic. Alas, he was anxious to pursue his dream. Perhaps now he will find some other career..."**

**"That's not fair," I said. "What happened the first time? Was it really so bad?"**

"Yes." Zeus muttered darkly, Thalia saw no need to shock her father this time. It _was _bad.

**Chiron looked away quickly. "Let's move along, shall we?"**

**But I wasn't quite ready to let the subject drop. Something had occurred to me when Chiron talked about my mother's fate, as if he were intentionally avoiding the word**_**death.**___**The beginnings of an idea—a tiny, hopeful fire—started forming in my mind.**

"Hypocrite!" Yelled Nico, "You told me off for thinking the exact same thing!"

"yes, but Nico, you actually attempted it, Percy just thought about it!" Annabeth reassured the now fuming boy. Hades looked at his son questionably at this, but Nico refused to meet his eye.

**"Chiron," I said. "If the gods and Olympus and all that are real ..."**

**"Yes, child?"**

**"Does that mean the Underworld is real, too?"**

"Yes, yes it is!" Stated Hades simply, a cunning look on his face.

**Chiron's expression darkened.**

**"Yes, child." He paused, as if choosing his words care fully. "There is a place where spirits go after death. But for now ... until we know more ... I would urge you to put that out of your mind."**

"Like _that _will work"" Artemis sighed rolling her eyes while her twin nodded in the back ground. The throne room fell silent…

"Did you two just _agree _on something?" Choked out Hephaestus.

"NO!" They shouted together, making their family laugh.

**"What do you mean, 'until we know more'?"**

"That your mom has actually been kidnapped by your psychopathic uncle!" Ares informed the book, cleaning his nails with a knife. Hades glared at his nephew for this, but otherwise, he let the comment slide.

**"Come, Percy. Let's see the woods."**

**As we got closer, I realized how huge the forest was. It took up at least a quarter of the valley, with trees so tall and thick, you could imagine nobody had been in there since the Native Americans.**

**Chiron said, "The woods are stocked, if you care to try your luck, but go armed."**

**"Stocked with what?" I asked. "Armed with what?"**

"I see where the boy got his brains uncle." Athena smiled sweetly, before she had a date with a puffer fish that landed in her hair.

**"You'll see. Capture the flag is Friday night. Do you have your own sword and shield?"**

"He just got to camp Chiron!" Hestia lectured the book patiently.

**"My own—?"**

**"No," Chiron said. "I don't suppose you do.**

"Duh." Ares sounded utterly bored, his daughter seemed to be trying to hide in her chair, not an easy task for a big girl.

**I think a size five will do. I'll visit the armory later."**

**I wanted to ask what kind of summer camp had an armory, but there was too much else to think about, so the tour continued. We saw the archery range, the canoeing lake, the stables (which Chiron didn't seem to like very much),**

This got a few chuckles from the assembled readers.

**the javelin range, the sing-along amphitheater, and the arena where Chiron said they held sword and spear fights.**

"My favorite part of that camp!" Cheered Ares, sounding slightly less bored than before, Clarisse cringed, she knew what was coming next.

**"Sword and spear fights?" I asked.**

**"Cabin challenges and all that," he explained. "Not lethal. Usually.**

"Great way to comfort the boy!" Hera stated in a weary voice. "I really need to teach that Centaurs how to work with kids!"

"You gonna teach him how to make toddlers run off screaming mother?" Hermes asked innocently, the goddess just glared at her son.

**Oh, yes, and there's the mess hall."**

**Chiron pointed to an outdoor pavilion framed in white Grecian columns on a hill overlooking the sea. There were a dozen stone picnic tables. No roof. No walls.**

**"What do you do when it rains?" I asked.**

**Chiron looked at me as if I'd gone a little weird.**

"He just gets told that the immortal Greek gods are real and he wonders about technicalities like that?" Chuckled Hephaestus, "I like this kid!"

**"We still have to eat, don't we?" I decided to drop the subject.**

"Not if I had my way you wouldn't." Muttered Dionysus. The immortals in the room ignored him, this comment was normal, but the demi-gods looked at him as though they were scared, but then, they were.

**Finally, he showed me the cabins. There were twelve of them, nestled in the woods by the lake. They were arranged in a U, with two at the base and five in a row on either side. And they were without doubt the most bizarre collection of buildings I'd ever seen.**

"They show ..." Athena started, before she was cut off by her uncle.

"Yes, yes, they show our personalities, continue child!" Poseidon waved Katie on.

**Except for the fact that each had a large brass number above the door (odds on the left side, evens on the right), they looked absolutely nothing alike. Number nine had smokestacks, like a tiny factory.**

"Why do they always notice yours first?" Aphrodite demanded from her husband, "Mine's prettier!"

Piper sighed at her mother's antics, Hephaestus just shrugged, "Mines more obvious!"

**Number four had tomato vines on the walls and a roof made out of real grass.**

"That's mine!" Demeter sighed happily. "You are keeping it clean dear, aren't you?"

Katie just rolled her eyes and continued reading.

**Seven seemed to be made of solid gold, which gleamed so much in the sunlight it was almost impossible to look at.**

"Woohoo, MY CABIN!" Cheered Apollo.

**they all faced a commons area about the size of a soccer field, dotted with Greek statues, fountains, flower beds, and a couple of basketball hoops (which were more my speed).**

**In the center of the field was a huge stone-lined firepit. Even though it was a warm afternoon, the hearth smoldered. A girl about nine years old was tending the flames, poking the coals with a stick.**

"Hang on, I think that boy can see you aunty H!" Hermes called out in surprise.

"Well, he is _my _son!" Stated Poseidon proudly, while the baby version of the narrator mumbled something about marshmallow ponies.

**The pair of cabins at the head of the field, numbers one and two, looked like his-and-hers mausoleums, big white marble boxes with heavy columns in front. Cabin one was the biggest and bulkiest of the twelve. Its polished bronze doors shimmered like a hologram, so that from different angles lightning bolts seemed to streak across them.**

"Ugh, I hate that place!" Grunted Thalia, "I'm so glad that I got to move out of it!"

"Hang on young lady, that is _my _cabin you are talking about!"

"I know that dad, why else would I be sleeping in it?"

**Cabin two was more graceful somehow, with slimmer columns garlanded with pomegranates and flowers. The walls were carved with images of peacocks.**

"Mine." Hera said happily.

**"Zeus and Hera?" I guessed.**

**"Correct," Chiron said.**

**"Their cabins look empty."**

"They should be, they all should be!" Stated Hera. The half-bloods shifted uncomfortably at this.

**"Several of the cabins are. That's true. No one ever stays in one or two."**

**Okay. So each cabin had a different god, like a mascot.**

There was a general murmur of disagreement from the gods, clearly they did not like being called mascots. On the other hand, this seemed to amuse Hades greatly.

**Twelve cabins for the twelve Olympians. But why would some be empty?**

"Because Some of us can restrain ourselves, and honor our marriage oaths!" Sniffed Hera

"And some of us were wise enough to abandon the company of men!" Added Artemis, while Thalia nodded in the background.

**I stopped in front of the first cabin on the left, cabin three.**

"Your new home!" Poseidon cooed at the baby in his arms.

"Actually uncle, he's staying in _my _cabin at the moment, cause I'm that amazing!"

"Shut up Hermes!"

"Yes uncle."

**It wasn't high and mighty like cabin one, but long and low and solid. The outer walls were of rough gray stone studded with pieces of seashell and coral, as if the slabs had been hewn straight from the bottom of the ocean floor. I peeked inside the open doorway**

"Ahh, his daddy's calling to him!" Aphrodite cackled manically. There was a sound of chairs scraping as everyone tried to move away from the love goddess.

**and Chiron said, "Oh, I wouldn't do that!"**

"Why not?" Whined Poseidon, sounding around the same age as his present day son, making all of his family laugh.

**Before he could pull me back, I caught the salty scent of the interior, like the wind on the shore at Montauk. The interior walls glowed like abalone. There were six empty bunk beds with silk sheets turned down. But there was no sign anyone had ever slept there. The place felt so sad and lonely, I was glad when Chiron put his hand on my shoulder and said, "Come along, Percy."**

"Oh well, at least I have him n… where did he go?"

Hermes sat there laughing his head off and pulled a giggling Percy out from under his chair. "We got him cousin!" He told the baby. Percy clapped his hands in delight. Poseidon glared at the two of them.

**Most of the other cabins were crowded with campers.** ** Number five was bright red—a real nasty paint job, as if the color had been splashed on with buckets and fists.**

"Mine!" Growled Ares happily

"Cause none of us want it!" Added Apollo "Ouch!"

It seemed like Clarisse had been taking lessons from her aunt, only she was wearing leather boots instead of trainers.

**The roof was lined with barbed wire. A stuffed wild boar's head hung over the doorway, and its eyes seemed to follow me. Inside I could see a bunch of mean-looking kids, both girls and boys, arm wrestling and arguing with each other while rock music blared. The loudest was a girl maybe thirteen or fourteen. She wore a size XXXL CAMP HALF-BLOOD T-shirt under a camouflage jacket. She zeroed in on me and gave me an evil sneer. She reminded me of Nancy Bobofit, though the camper girl was much bigger and tougher looking, and her hair was long and stringy, and brown instead of red.**

"Oh no." Clarisse whimpered while the others around her laughed, they all knew what had happened, even if they hadn't been there, the story was pretty famous at camp. Ares looked at his daughter in confusion, sure that she couldn't be his if she was _whimpering._

**I kept walking, trying to stay clear of Chiron's hooves. "We haven't seen any other centaurs," I observed.**

**"No," said Chiron sadly. "My kinsmen are a wild and barbaric folk,**

"Party Ponies!" Hermes yelled, tossing Percy up into the air. The child loved it, but Poseidon just growled.

"Be _careful_ with him Hermes!"

"yes sir!"

**I'm afraid. You might encounter them in the wilderness, or at major sporting events. But you won't see any here."**

**"You said your name was Chiron. Are you really ..."**

**He smiled down at me.**_**"The**___**Chiron from the stories? Trainer of Hercules and all that? Yes, Percy, I am."**

**"But, shouldn't you be dead?"**

**Chiron paused, as if the question intrigued him. "I honestly don't know about**_**should**___**be. The truth is, I**_**can't**___**be dead. You see, eons ago the gods granted my wish. I could continue the work I loved. I could be a teacher of heroes as long as humanity needed me. I gained much from that wish ... and I gave up much. But I'm still here, so I can only assume I'm still needed."**

"Let's hope he is a_lways _needed." Rachel sighed happily, the others quickly agreed with her, they all loved Chiron.

**I thought about being a teacher for three thousand years. It wouldn't have made my Top Ten Things to Wish For list.**

**"Doesn't it ever get boring?"**

**"No, no," he said. "Horribly depressing, at times, but never boring."**

Chuckles ran through the Olympians, but their children just shuddered.

**"Why depressing?"**

**Chiron seemed to turn hard of hearing again.**

**"Oh, look," he said. "Annabeth is waiting for us."**

"Annabeth…" Athena warned.

"Shut _up _mother, I will date Percy if I want to!"

"What?"

"Nothing!"

**The blond girl I'd met at the Big House was reading a book in front of the last cabin on the left, number eleven.**

"Home sweet home!" Connor and Travis sang.

**When we reached her, she looked me over critically, like she was still thinking about how much I drooled.**

"Or how cute you are!" Aphrodite cooed, Annabeth went bright scarlet, something that her mother seriously did not like.

**I tried to see what she was reading, but I couldn't make out the title. I thought my dyslexia was acting up. Then I realized the title wasn't even English. The letters looked Greek to me. I mean, literally Greek.**

"You can read greek?" Jason looked at Annabeth disbelievingly.

"We all can!" The girl replied, sounding more than a little defensive. "The same way you read Latin!"

The gods all looked surprised at this, why was there a _Roman _with their _Greek _kids? They were never meant to meet each other!

**There were pictures of temples and statues and different kinds of columns, like those in an architecture book.**

**"Annabeth," Chiron said, "I have masters' archery class at noon. Would you take Percy from here?"**

"Aww Percabeth's first date!" Giggled the goddess of love. No one in the room dared ask her to explain what this tangled word meant.

**"Yes, sir."**

**"Cabin eleven," Chiron told me, gesturing toward the doorway. "Make yourself at home."**

**Out of all the cabins, eleven looked the most like a regular old summer camp cabin, with the emphasis on**_**old.**_

"My cabin does _not _look old!" Hermes protested.

"Um, dad?" Started Travis.

"It kind of does!" Finished Connor.

The god of thieves simply leaned back in his throne and sulked.

**The threshold was worn down, the brown paint peeling. Over the doorway was one of those doctor's symbols, a winged pole with two snakes wrapped around it. What did they call it... ?**

"A caduceus." Hermes spat, still unhappy about the description of his cabin.

**A caduceus.**

**Inside, it was packed with people, both boys and girls, way more than the number of bunk beds. Sleeping bags were spread all over on the floor. It looked like a gym where the Red Cross had set up an evacuation center.**

Hermes held the boy out to Apollo, scowling all the while. "Take the child before I kill him brother!"

Apollo picked up Percy, trying to avoid the eyes of the angered god, this was the first time that any of them had ever seen him so annoyed before.

**Chiron didn't go in. The door was too low for him. But when the campers saw him they all stood and bowed respectfully.**

**"Well, then," Chiron said. "Good luck, Percy. I'll see you at dinner."**

**He galloped away toward the archery range.**

**I stood in the doorway, looking at the kids. They weren't bowing anymore. They were staring at me, sizing me up. I knew this routine. I'd gone through it at enough schools.**

**"Well?" Annabeth prompted. "Go on."**

**So naturally I tripped coming in the door and made a total fool of myself.**

"Weeeee!" Yelled Percy, setting of the laughter in the throne room once again.

**There were some snickers from the campers, but none of them said anything.**

**Annabeth announced, "Percy Jackson, meet cabin eleven."**

**"Regular or undetermined?" somebody asked.**

"That was me!" Cheered Connor! "We had just got back to the cabin then!"

**I didn't know what to say, but Annabeth said, "Undetermined."**

**Everybody groaned.**

"Boys You need to welcome guests!" Hermes Brightened up long enough to lecture his sons, but then he went back to brooding. Travis and Connor rolled their eyes.

"It's not our fault that there are to many people in that cabin!"

**A guy who was a little older than the rest came forward.**

**"Now, now, campers. That's what we're here for. Welcome, Percy. You can have that spot on the floor, right over there."**

**The guy was about nineteen, and he looked pretty cool. He was tall and muscular, with short-cropped sandy hair and a friendly smile. He wore an orange tank top, cutoffs, sandals, and a leather necklace with five different-colored clay beads. The only thing unsettling about his appearance was a thick white scar that ran from just beneath his right eye to his jaw, like an old knife slash.**

**"This is Luke,"**

This really did cheer Hermes up,, the mention of his favorite son, but he must have been the only immortal not to notice the way that the demi-gods scowled and glared at the name.

**Annabeth said, and her voice sounded different somehow. I glanced over and could've sworn she was blushing.**

"Oooh, looks like someone has a crush!" Cheered Aphrodite.

"Don't you _ever, _say that again!" Yelled Annabeth, the venom in her words clear to all and the look of anger on her face enough to startle even the gods.

"And what, pray tell, did my son do to earn your hatred daughter of Athena?" Hermes asked, his eyes narrowing.

"The same thing he did to make us all hate him!" Answered Connor with a glare at the floor.

**She saw me looking, and her expression hardened again. "He's your counselor, for now."**

**"For now?" I asked.**

**"You're undetermined," Luke explained patiently. "They don't know what cabin to put you in, so you're here. Cabin eleven takes all newcomers, all visitors. Naturally, we would. Hermes, our patron, is the god of travelers."**

"he plays the role of the counselor perfectly" Stated Hermes happily, not noticing all the glares he was attracting.

**I looked at the tiny section of floor they'd given me. I had nothing to put there to mark it as my own, no luggage, no clothes, no sleeping bag. Just the Minotaur's horn. I thought about setting that down, but then I remembered that Hermes was also the god of thieves.**

"Good choice son!" Poseidon muttered. Connor and Travis looked at each other guiltily.

**I looked around at the campers' faces, some sullen and suspicious, some grinning stupidly, some eyeing me as if they were waiting for a chance to pick my pockets.**

"That's my kids!" Sang Hermes, now back to a good mood.

**"How long will I be here?" I asked.**

**"Good question," Luke said. "Until you're determined."**

**"How long will that take?"**

**The campers all laughed.**

"Do they really think that badly of us?" Mused Demeter.

"Yes!" Came the reply from all the demi-gods present and the immortals shifted slightly in their chairs.

**"Come on," Annabeth told me. "I'll show you the volleyball court."**

**"I've already seen it."**

**"Come on." She grabbed my wrist and dragged me outside. I could hear the kids of cabin eleven laughing behind me.**

**When we were a few feet away, Annabeth said, "Jackson, you have to do better than that."**

**"What?"**

**She rolled her eyes and mumbled under her breath, "I can't believe I thought you were the one."**

"Oh, but he is deary!" Aphrodite was back to cackling again, everyone else was back to running away from her.

**"What's your problem?" I was getting angry now. "All I know is, I kill some bull guy—"**

**"Don't talk like that!" Annabeth told me. "You know how many kids at this camp wish they'd had your chance?"**

**"To get killed?"**

**"To fight the Minotaur! What do you think we train for?"**

**I shook my head. "Look, if the thing I fought really was**_**the**___**Minotaur, the same one in the stories ..."**

**"Yes."**

**"Then there's only one."**

**"Yes."**

**"And he died, like, a gajillion years ago, right? Theseus killed him in the labyrinth. So ..."**

"Aren't his maths skills simply amazing?" Chuckled Apollo, petting the kid on the head.

"Better than ours!" Agreed Hermes.

**"Monsters don't die, Percy. They can be killed. But they don't die."**

"That sounded better in my head." Annabeth claimed defensively.

**"Oh, thanks. That clears it up."**

**"They don't have souls, like you and me. You can dispel them for a while, maybe even for a whole lifetime if you're lucky. But they are primal forces. Chiron calls them arche types. Eventually, they re-form."**

**I thought about Mrs. Dodds. "You mean if I killed one, accidentally, with a sword—"**

**"The Fur ... I mean, your math teacher. That's right. She's still out there. You just made her very, very mad."**

"That's what makes them the babysitters from hell!" Claimed Nico, earning himself weird looks. "No matter how many times I kill them, they keep coming back!"

**"How did you know about Mrs. Dodds?"**

**"You talk in your sleep."**

**"You almost called her something. A Fury? They're Hades' torturers, right?"**

**Annabeth glanced nervously at the ground, as if she expected it to open up and swallow her.**

Nico shifted uneasily while everyone in the room looked at Hades.

"Okay, one of Hermes' brats was irritating me, calling me an old man and saying I was pathetic." Shrugged the lord of the dead, "I didn't kill him!" Hermes looked furious, and Connor looked like he was trying to figure something out.

"Is that where the huge crack at the entrance to the dining pavilion came from then?"

"No, I never leave a trace!"

"Actually, that was me!" All eyes turned to Nico, but he just shrugged and kept his head down.

**"You shouldn't call them by name, even here. We call them the Kindly Ones, if we have to speak of them at all."**

**"Look, is there anything we**_**can**___**say without it thundering?" I sounded whiny, even to myself, but right then I didn't care. "Why do I have to stay in cabin eleven, anyway? Why is everybody so crowded together? There are plenty of empty bunks right over there."**

**I pointed to the first few cabins, and Annabeth turned pale. "You don't just choose a cabin, Percy. It depends on who your parents are. Or ... your parent."**

**She stared at me, waiting for me to get it.**

**"My mom is Sally Jackson," I said.** **"She works at the candy store in Grand Central Station. At least, she used to."**

**"I'm sorry about your mom, Percy. But that's not what I mean. I'm talking about your other parent. Your dad."**

**"He's dead. I never knew him."**

All the gods winced at this, it was a common belief amoung their children, but it was still painful.

**Annabeth sighed. Clearly, she'd had this conversation before with other kids.**

**"Your father's not dead, Percy."**

"No, thank the gods, I really don't want my little brother in my kingdom!" Stated Hades.

**"How can you say that? You know him?"**

**"No, of course not."**

**"Then how can you say—"**

**"Because I know**_**you.**_ **You wouldn't be here if you weren't one of us."**

**"You don't know anything about me."**

**"No?" She raised an eyebrow. "I bet you moved around from school to school. I bet you were kicked out of a lot of them."**

"And here come psychic Annie!" Joked Piper.

"Don't call me that!"

"Yes ma'am!"

**"How—"**

**"Diagnosed with dyslexia. Probably ADHD, too."**

**I tried to swallow my embarrassment. "What does that have to do with anything?"**

**"Taken together, it's almost a sure sign. The letters float off the page when you read, right? That's because your mind is hardwired for ancient Greek.** **And the ADHD—you're impulsive, can't sit still in the classroom. That's your battle field reflexes. In a real fight, they'd keep you alive. As for the attention problems, that's because you see too much, Percy, not too little. Your senses are better than a regular mortal's. Of course the teachers want you medicated. Most of them are monsters. They don't want you seeing them for what they are."**

**"You sound like ... you went through the same thing?"**

"We all did!" Sighed Leo.

**"Most of the kids here did. If you weren't like us, you couldn't have survived the Minotaur, much less the ambrosia and nectar."**

**"Ambrosia and nectar."**

**"The food and drink we were giving you to make you better. That stuff would've killed a normal kid.**

Dionysus chuckled as though he was enjoying the mental image.

**It would've turned your blood to fire and your bones to sand and you'd be dead. Face it. You're a half-blood."**

**A half-blood.**

**I was reeling with so many questions I didn't know where to start.**

**Then a husky voice yelled, "Well! A newbie!"**

**I looked over. The big girl from the ugly red cabin**

"My cabin is not _ugly!" _yelled Ares. No one dared correct him.

**was sauntering toward us. She had three other girls behind her, all big and ugly and mean looking like her, all wearing camo jackets.**

"Um, can I leave the room?" Everyone was shocked to hear such a timid voice come from the big girl, but Katie just replied:

"Nope, La Rue, you know the rules, no one leaves!"

**"Clarisse," Annabeth sighed. "Why don't you go polish your spear or something?"**

**"Sure, Miss Princess," the big girl said. "So I can run you through with it Friday night."**

"I marvel at the intelligence of your children Ares!" Athena rolled her eyes glaring at the war god.

_**''Erre es korakas!"**_ **Annabeth said,**

"Language!"

"Yes mom, sorry!"

**which I somehow under stood was Greek for 'Go to the crows!' though I had a feeling it was a worse curse than it sounded.**

**"You don't stand a chance."**

**"We'll pulverize you," Clarisse said, but her eye twitched. Perhaps she wasn't sure she could follow through on the threat.**

"Brat." Ares glared at Annabeth, "You will _never _beat my children in a battle!"

"We'll see lord Ares!" Smiled Annabeth.

**She turned toward me. "Who's this little runt?"**

**"Percy Jackson," Annabeth said, "meet Clarisse, Daughter of Ares."**

**I blinked. "Like ... the war god?"**

**Clarisse sneered. "You got a problem with that?"**

**"No," I said, recovering my wits. "It explains the bad smell."**

The Olympians laughed as Ares fumed and his daughter tried to pretend that she was not in the room.

**Clarisse growled. "We got an initiation ceremony for newbies, Prissy."**

**"Percy."**

**"Whatever. Come on, I'll show you."**

**"Clarisse—" Annabeth tried to say.**

**"Stay out of it, wise girl."**

**Annabeth looked pained, but she did stay out of it, and I didn't really want her help. I was the new kid. I had to earn my own rep.**

"Okay, yes, that is right, but I'm still not happy about this!" Conceded Poseidon, looking longingly at the child who was now attempting to snatch his "nose" back from the sun god.

**I handed Annabeth my minotaur horn and got ready to fight, but before I knew it, Clarisse had me by the neck and was dragging me toward a cinder-block building that I knew immediately was the bathroom.**

**I was kicking and punching. I'd been in plenty of fights before, but this big girl Clarisse had hands like iron.**

Ares smiled proudly, "That's my girl!"

Clarisse flinched.

**She dragged me into the girls' bathroom. There was a line of toilets on one side and a line of shower stalls down the other. It smelled just like any public bathroom, and I was thinking—as much as I**_**could**_**think with Clarisse ripping my hair out—that if this place belonged to the gods, they should've been able to afford classier johns.**

**Clarisse's friends were all laughing, and I was trying to find the strength I'd used to fight the Minotaur, but it just wasn't there.**

**"Like he's 'Big Three' material," Clarisse said as she pushed me toward one of the toilets. "Yeah, right. Minotaur probably fell over laughing, he was so stupid looking."**

**Her friends snickered.**

**Annabeth stood in the corner, watching through her fingers.**

**Clarisse bent me over on my knees and started pushing my head toward the toilet bowl. It reeked like rusted pipes and, well, like what goes into toilets.**

"_Ewww_!" Aphrodite gave a delicate shudder, but at least she had stopped cackling like a mad woman.

**I strained to keep my head up. I was looking at the scummy water, thinking, I will not go into that. I won't.**

**Then something happened. I felt a tug in the pit of my stomach.**

Poseidon laughed. "This is going to be fun!" All the half-bloods nodded their agreement, except Clarisse who just glowered at the floor, saying nothing.

**I heard the plumbing rumble, the pipes shudder. Clarisse's grip on my hair loosened. Water shot out of the toilet, making an arc straight over my head, and the next thing I knew, I was sprawled on the bathroom tiles with Clarisse screaming behind me.**

"No Fair!" Ares yelled, standing from his throne.

**I turned just as water blasted out of the toilet again, hitting Clarisse straight in the face so hard it pushed her down onto her butt.**

Ares glared at his uncle; "Why did you help him?"

"Don't look at me, kid did this of his own power!"

**The water stayed on her like the spray from a fire hose, pushing her backward into a shower stall.**

**She struggled, gasping, and her friends started coming toward her.**

**But then the other toilets exploded, too, and six more streams of toilet water blasted them back. The showers acted up, too, and together all the fixtures sprayed the camouflage girls right out of the bathroom, spinning them around like pieces of garbage being washed away.**

"Nice metaphor." Demeter remarked dryly.

**As soon as they were out the door, I felt the tug in my gut lessen, and the water shut off as quickly as it had started.**

**The entire bathroom was flooded. Annabeth hadn't been spared.**

Athena did not look happy about this, which was rather strange as the girl mentioned was smiling at the memory.

**She was dripping wet, but she hadn't been pushed out the door. She was standing in exactly the same place, staring at me in shock.**

**I looked down and realized I was sitting in the only dry spot in the whole room. There was a circle of dry floor around me. I didn't have one drop of water on my clothes. Nothing.**

"Good boy!" Poseidon smiled proudly.

**I stood up, my legs shaky.**

**Annabeth said, "How did you ..."**

**"I don't know."**

**We walked to the door. Outside, Clarisse and her friends were sprawled in the mud, and a bunch of other campers had gathered around to gawk. Clarisse's hair was flattened across her face. Her camouflage jacket was sopping and she smelled like sewage.**

Several of the goddesses nearly gagged at this, Clarisse was very red in the face by now.

**She gave me a look of absolute hatred. "You are dead, new boy. You are totally dead."**

Ares nodded in agreement. "Yes, yes he is!"

"Touch him and you will go for an unexpected trip to see your uncle Ares!" Came the flippant reply.

**I probably should have let it go, but I said, "You want to gargle with toilet water again, Clarisse? Close your mouth."**

Poseidon laughed hard at this, Apollo, Hermes, and Hephaestus joining in while the others gave them dirty looks.

**Her friends had to hold her back. They dragged her toward cabin five, while the other campers made way to avoid her flailing feet.**

"He makes her sound like a wild animal!" Mused Travis.

"That's cause she is!" Added Connor. Both of them had a sudden meeting with Clarisse's fists and they lost interest in talking for some reason.

**Annabeth stared at me. I couldn't tell whether she was just grossed out or angry at me for dousing her.**

**"What?" I demanded. "What are you thinking?"**

**"I'm thinking," she said, "that I want you on my team for capture the flag."**

Everyone laughed at this, even Clarisse. Then Katie passed the book over to Connor.

"Do I really need to introduce myself?" He asked Thalia.

"Yes!"

"Fine! Connor Stoll, son of Hermes."

Hermes looked at his son happily as he began to read.

"My Dinner Goes up in Smoke."


	8. My Dinner Goes up in Smoke

"**My Dinner Goes up in Smoke,"** Read Connor.

"I'm hungry!" Whined Apollo.

"So what else is new?"

**Word of the bathroom incident spread immediately.**

"Ugh, I think you can thank my family for that Perce." Piper called out looking guilty.

"Don't blame yourself Pipes!" Laughed Travis, poking her in the side, while all the others nodded in agreement. The Aphrodite kids _were _gossips, but that was before Piper had come to camp.

Connor leant over to his brother and whispered in his ear "Weren't we the ones who started the rumors?"

"They don't need to know that!"

**Wherever I went, campers pointed at me and murmured something****about toilet****water. Or maybe they were just staring at Annabeth, who was still pretty much dripping wet.**

Annabeth laughed at the memory. "Thankfully, I only got hit by the water from the shower, otherwise, that day would have been really unpleasant!"

**She showed me a few more places: the metal shop (where kids were forging their own****swords), the arts-and-crafts room (where satyrs were sandblasting a giant marble statue of a goat-man),**

"It always surprises me how much they are devoted to him, but my son does not want to be found." There was so much sadness in the gods voice that they all shot him looks of pity.

**and the climbing wall, which actually consisted of two facing walls that shook violently, dropped boulders, sprayed lava, and clashed together if you didn't get to the top fast enough.**

"I love that wall!" Nico cheered. "What?"

"Poor boy's gone mad!" Connor stated in mock grief.

"Well, he does live in the underworld, it was inevitable!" Travis followed his lead.

"Real funny guys."

**Finally we returned to the canoeing lake, where the trail led back to the cabins.**

**"I've got training to do," Annabeth said flatly. "Dinner's at seven-thirty. Just follow your cabin to the mess hall."**

**"Annabeth, I'm sorry about the toilets."**

A round of laughter filed the throne room of Olympus.

**"Whatever."**

**"It wasn't my fault."**

"LIAR!" The Demi-gods all called out through their laughter. Poseidon just smiled proudly.

**She looked at me skeptically, and I realized it**_**was**___**my fault. I'd made water shoot out of the bathroom fixtures. I didn't understand how. But the toilets had responded to me. I had become one with the plumbing.**

"All hail Perseus Jackson, supreme lord of the bathroom!" Cheered Will with a mock bow to where the baby Percy sat on Apollo's lap. The toddler clapped at this, obviously he enjoyed being treated as royalty.

"He's just like his dad!" Giggled Aphrodite.

"Thanks!" Called out both Will and Percy at the same time, causing another roar of laughter to do the rounds.

**"You need to talk to the Oracle," Annabeth said.**

"I hate the oracle!" Annabeth shuddered.

"HEY!"

"Sorry Rachel, let me rephrase: I hate the old oracle?"

"Better!"

**"Who?"**

**"Not who. What.** **The Oracle. I'll ask Chiron."**

"Yay, my oracle's debut, but, at least this time I got a hot one!" Apollo cheered, shooting a flirty glare over at the girl who blushed bright red.

"Read Stoll!"

**I stared into the lake, wishing somebody would give me a straight answer for once.**

"Interesting, even before you claimed him, the boy seems to have an unnatural attachment to you fish face!" Athena mused

"What can I say without sounding like Aphrodite?" Poseidon shrugged "He can feel how much I love him!"

"HEY! What's wrong with sounding like me?"

"Nothing, come here boy"

Percy all but fell off of the sun god's knee and stumbled into Poseidon's outstretched arms. "Daddy!"

**I wasn't expecting anybody to be looking back at me from the bottom, so my heart skipped a beat when I noticed two teenage girls sitting cross-legged at the base of the pier, about twenty feet below.**

"Oooh, looks like someone's crushing!" Squealed Aphrodite, but then she caught the glare from Annabeth and something clicked in her head, making her giggle manically. Thankfully, no one noticed.

**They wore blue jeans and shimmering green T-shirts, and their brown hair floated loose around their shoulders as minnows darted in and out. They smiled and waved as if I were a long-lost friend.**

"They know who you are son!" Poseidon spoke to the boy in question as he rolled around on his knee, trying to avoid the tickling hands of the father.

"No Daddy, no tickle, pwwwease!"

All others in the room smiled at the scene.

**I didn't know what else to do. I waved back.**

**"Don't encourage them," Annabeth warned. "Naiads are terrible flirts."**

"_Someone_ is jealous." Aphrodite stated her eyes flashing happily when she saw the blush in the young girl's cheeks that proved her right.

"What Annie, no complaints?"

"Shut it Thalia!"

**"Naiads," I repeated, feeling completely overwhelmed. "That's it. I want to go home now."**

"And there we have a breaking point in Percy's sanity!" stated Katie happily.

"You mean he had some in the first place?" Travis clutched his chest.

"For once, good point!"

**Annabeth frowned. "Don't you get it, Percy? You**_**are**___**home. This is the only safe place on earth for kids like us."**

**"You mean, mentally disturbed kids?"**

**"I mean**_**not human.**___**Not totally human, anyway. Half-human."**

**"Half-human and half-what?"**

"Oh my, the boy really is not getting this!" Hestia commented.

"Nah, he just doesn't want to believe it." Poseidon answered holding the squealing infant above his head.

"Weeeeeee, I fly, I fly!"

"Any higher, nephew, and you will have to answer to me!" Zeus joked.

Percy looked over and stuck his tongue out. "Meanie!"

"Wow, Uncle P, you son really has a way with words!" Chuckled Apollo, setting off yet another round of laughter.

**"I think you know."**

**I didn't want to admit it, but I was afraid I did. I felt a tingling in my limbs, a sensation I sometimes felt when my mom talked about my dad.**

Poseidon smiled happily. "You miss me Percy?"

"No!"

"Oooh burn by a two year old!" Hermes chimed in. Poseidon pouted.

**"God," I said. "Half-god."**

**Annabeth nodded. "Your father isn't dead, Percy. He's one of the Olympians."**

"Yes, yes I am, and you boy, are in trouble!" Poseidon growled bringing the boy back down.

Percy squealed "No tickle daddy, me no like tickle!"

**"That's ... crazy."**

**"Is it? What's the most common thing gods did in the old stories? They ran around falling in love with humans**

"Love or lust?" Asked Hera coldly.

"Love!" Poseidon claimed.

"Lust!" Called the others while the demi-gods shifted uncomfortably, this was not what they wanted to hear.

**and having kids with them. Do you think they've changed their habits in the last few millennia?"**

"No." Called the demi-gods, aiming for revenge. It worked and the gods with kids all looked down unhappily, fearing the opinions of their children.

**"But those are just—" I almost said**_**myths**___**again. Then I remembered Chiron's warning that in two thousand years,**_**I**___**might be considered a myth.**

**"But if all the kids here are half-gods—"**

**"Demigods," Annabeth said. "That's the official term. Or half-bloods."**

**"Then who's your dad?"**

A sound of indignation from Athena stopped Connor in his tracks as she glared at the baby. Percy pulled his dad's arm in front of himself for protection.

"Scawwwy!"

**Her hands tightened around the pier railing. I got the feeling I'd just trespassed on a sensitive subject.**

**"My dad is a professor at West Point," she said. "I haven't seen him since I was very small. He teaches American history."**

**"He's human."**

"_Yes._" Athena looked at her daughter in shock at the tone in her voice. What had happened between the two?

**"What? You assume it has to be a male god who finds a human female attractive? How sexist is that?"**

"Yes, but you should expect nothing more from males child." Artemis sniffed.

**"Who's your mom, then?"**

**"Cabin six."**

**"Meaning?"**

**Annabeth straightened. "Athena. Goddess of wisdom and battle."**

"I love you daughter!" Athena smiled.

"Thanks Mom."

**Okay, I thought. Why not? **

**"And my dad?"**

**"Undetermined," Annabeth said, "like I told you before. Nobody knows."**

**"Except my mother. She knew."**

**"Maybe not, Percy. Gods don't always reveal their identities."**

"I wouldn't have been able to even if I tried!" Poseidon stated smiling nostalgically.

"Awww." Aphrodite cooed. "That's so sweet, Uncle."

"Clear sighted?" Rachel asked.

"Yep." Athena whispered back.

**"My dad would have. He loved her."**

"As I can see!" Sang Aphrodite, causing Poseidon to go bright red. Percy moved round to look his father in the face.

"Daddy love Mommy?"

"Yes, daddy loves Mommy."

Hermes and Apollo snickered at the sea god's use of language.

**Annabeth gave me a cautious look. She didn't want to burst my bubble.**

**"Maybe you're right. Maybe he'll send a sign. That's the only way to know for sure: your father has to send you a sign claiming you as his son. Sometimes it happens."**

**"You mean sometimes it doesn't?"**

All the gods shifted uneasily. "It's not that we don't care…" Demeter sighed.

**Annabeth ran her palm along the rail. "The gods are busy. They have a lot of kids and they don't always ... Well, sometimes they don't care about us, Percy. They ignore us."**

All the deities with children groaned.

"Is that really what you all think of us boys?" Hermes asked his sons.

"Sorry Dad." Whispered Travis.

**I thought about some of the kids I'd seen in the Hermes cabin, teenagers who looked sullen and depressed, as if they were waiting for a call that would never come. I'd known kids like that at Yancy Academy, shuffled off to boarding school by rich parents who didn't have the time to deal with them.**

"Been there, done that!" Sighed Rachel while Piper nodded in the background.

**But gods should behave better.**

"Well we would, but _someone _won't allow it!"

Everyone turned to glare at the lord of the skies who looked anywhere apart from at his family.

**"So I'm stuck here," I said. "That's it? For the rest of my life?"**

**"It depends," Annabeth said. "Some campers only stay the summer. If you're a child of Aphrodite or Demeter,** **you're probably not a real powerful force.**

"_What?"_ The screech from the 2 goddesses and their daughters shattered a few windows.

"Um sowwy?" Annabeth tried.

"Not gonna work for you sweaty!" Piper smiled at her, "What yourself while you sleep at night Annie!"

**The monsters might ignore you, so you can get by with a few months of summer training and live in the mortal world the rest of the year. But for some of us, it's too dangerous to leave. We're year-rounders. In the mortal world, we attract monsters. They sense us. They come to challenge us. Most of the time, they'll ignore us until we're old enough to cause trouble—about ten or eleven years old, but after that, most demigods either make their way here, or they get killed off. A few manage to survive in the outside world and become famous. Believe me, if I told you the names, you'd know them. Some don't even realize they're demigods. But very, very few are like that."**

**"So monsters can't get in here?"**

**Annabeth shook her head. "Not unless they're intentionally stocked in the woods or specially summoned by somebody on the inside."**

**"Why would anybody want to summon a monster?"**

**"Practice fights. Practical jokes."**

"We did stop doing that after… yeah" Travis stated, earning some grimaces from his friends and curious looks from the gods.

**"Practical jokes?"**

**"The point is, the borders are sealed to keep mortals and monsters out. From the outside, mortals look into the valley and see nothing unusual, just a strawberry farm."**

**"So ... you're a year-rounder?"**

**Annabeth nodded. From under the collar of her T-shirt she pulled a leather necklace with five clay beads of different colors. It was just like Luke's, except Annabeth's also had a big gold ring strung on it, like a college ring.**

Annabeth absent mindedly played with the mentioned ring as it hung round her neck. Baby Percy moved round to look at her again.

"Pwetty!"

**"I've been here since I was seven," she said. "Every August, on the last day of summer session, you get a bead for surviving another year. I've been here longer than most of the counselors, and they're all in college."**

**"Why did you come so young?"**

**She twisted the ring on her necklace. "None of your business."**

"I hate it when that happens!" Grumbled Nico.

**"Oh." I stood there for a minute in uncomfortable silence. "So ... I could just walk out of here right now if I wanted to?"**

"Yes, if you wanted to die!" Poseidon said to the squirming child in his arms. Percy paid no mind to the comment holding his arms open to Annabeth "Pwetty!"

Annabeth looked up to the god of the sea questioningly before going to claim the boy.

**"It would be suicide, but you could, with Mr. D's or Chiron's permission. But they wouldn't give permission until the end of the summer session unless ..."**

**"Unless?"**

**"You were granted a quest. But that hardly ever happens. The last time …"**

**Her voice trailed off. I could tell from her tone that the last time hadn't gone well.**

**"Back in the sick room," I said, "when you were feeding me that stuff—"**

**"Ambrosia."**

**"Yeah. You asked me something about the summer solstice."**

**Annabeth's shoulders tensed. "So you**_**do**___**know something?"**

"yeah right, since when did Percy ever know anything?" Asked Will.

"Never, his head is full of kelp!" Agreed Athena.

**"Well... no. Back at my old school, I overheard Grover and Chiron talking about it. Grover mentioned the summer solstice. He said something like we didn't have much time, because of the deadline. What did that mean?"**

**She clenched her fists.**

**"I wish I knew. Chiron and the satyrs, they know, but they won't tell me. Something is wrong in Olympus, something pretty major. Last time I was there, everything seemed so**_**normal**_**."**

"Why did you come to Olympus?" Hera's expression was shrewd with suspicion.

Annabeth looked away. "I think it is explained in the book."

**"You've been to Olympus?"**

**"Some of us year-rounders—Luke and Clarisse and I and a few others—we took a field trip during winter solstice. That's when the gods have their big annual council."**

**"But... how did you get there?"**

**"The Long Island Railroad, of course. You get off at Penn Station. Empire State Building, special elevator to the six hundredth floor." She looked at me like she was sure I must know this already.**

"Yeah, because everyone thinks to look for a giant mountain above their city!" Rachel rolled her eyes.

"Sorry!"

**"You**_**are**___**a New Yorker, right?"**

**"Oh, sure." As far as I knew, there were only a hundred and two floors in the Empire State Building, but I decided not to point that out.**

**"Right after we visited," Annabeth continued, "the weather got weird, as if the gods had started fighting. A couple of times since, I've overheard satyrs talking. The best I can figure out is that something important was stolen.**

"What could have been stolen to make those idiots react in this way?" Hestia asked.

Athena's eyes narrowed. "I can think of one." She looked pointedly at the bolt in Zeus' hand.

To try and avoid the coming outburst, Connor read on.

**And if it isn't returned by summer solstice, there's going to be trouble. When you came, I was hoping ... I mean— Athena can get along with just about anybody, except for Ares. And of course she's got the rivalry with Poseidon.**

"Hey, what did I do?" Ares cried

"Ask yourself that carrion boy!"

**But, I mean, aside from that, I thought we could work together. I thought you might know something."**

"But then I learned that his head is full of kelp." Annabeth finished petting Percy on the head as he tried to catch her hand. The fondness in her voice made Aphrodite squeal and Athena glare at the son of her enemy. Why would the sea rat be so close to her daughter?

**I shook my head. I wished I could help her, but I felt too hungry and tired and mentally overloaded to ask any more questions.**

"Good, I was getting confused." Hermes called happily.

**"I've got to get a quest," Annabeth muttered to herself. "I'm**_**not**___**too young. If they would just tell me the problem …"**

**I could smell barbecue smoke coming from somewhere nearby. Annabeth must've heard my stomach growl. She told me to go on, she'd catch me later.**

"Stay away from the sea spawn daughter!"

"Shut up Mom!"

"What did you say?"

"Nothing, read Stoll."

**I left her on the pier, tracing her finger across the rail as if drawing a battle plan.**

"Not quite seaweed brain, but close!" She whispered into his ear as the miniature form of her boyfriend grabbed her in a tight hug.

**Back at cabin eleven, everybody was talking and horsing around, waiting for dinner. For the first time, I noticed that a lot of the campers had similar features: sharp noses, upturned eyebrows, mischievous smiles.**

"Ahh, those would be my kids!" Hermes sighed happily.

**They were the kind of kids that teachers would peg as troublemakers.**

"Iwonder why_!" _Katie said, rolling her eyes.

**Thankfully, nobody paid much attention to me as I walked over to my spot on the floor and plopped down with my minotaur horn.**

**The counselor, Luke, came over. He had the Hermes family resemblance, too. It was marred by that scar on his right cheek, but his smile was intact.**

Hermes looked at the book quizzically. When had his son got such a scar?

**"Found you a sleeping bag," he said. "And here, I stole you some toiletries from the camp store."**

"Ever heard this before?" Thalia whispered to Annabeth.

"Not a word."

**I couldn't tell if he was kidding about the stealing part.**

"He's not." All Travis and Connor stated, their expressions terrifying.

"We helped him steal it the bas…"

"Travis, there is a baby in the room"

"Sorry Annie."

Hermes looked at his sons growing even more confused, what could possibly have happened to have made his children hate each other? Especially with Luke, his own pride and joy. This all didn't make sense!

**I said, "Thanks."**

**"No prob." Luke sat next to me, pushed his back against the wall. "Tough first day?"**

"He better stay away from you!" Annabeth warned the baby in her arms. Percy looked a little shocked but nodded to her.

**"I don't belong here," I said. "I don't even believe in gods."**

**"Yeah," he said. "That's how we all started. Once you start believing in them? It doesn't get any easier."**

"Unfortunately, he's right!" Will sighed. All of the gods shifted uneasily again.

**The bitterness in his voice surprised me, because Luke seemed like a pretty easygoing guy. He looked like he could handle just about anything.**

**"So your dad is Hermes?" I asked.**

"Not the right thing to say Percy!"

"Sowwy?"

"Hang on!" Hermes glared at the girl. "What do you mean "Not the right thing to say?" There is nothing wrong with being my son!"

"Sorry Lord Hermes, it will be explained later."

**He pulled a switchblade out of his back pocket, and for a second I thought he was going to gut me, but he just scraped the mud off the sole of his sandal. "Yeah. Hermes."**

"WHAT IS SO WRONG WITH BEING MY KID!"

"You mean besides the criminal record and the mental disabilities?" Athena answered snidely. To stop a fight between his dad and the goddess, Connor read on.

**"The wing-footed messenger guy."**

"Well, that's a news description!" Hermes mused.

**"That's him. Messengers. Medicine. Travelers, merchants, thieves. Anybody who uses the roads. That's why you're here, enjoying cabin eleven's hospitality. Hermes isn't picky about who he sponsors."**

"Hey, Luke, that isn't very polite!"

**I figured Luke didn't mean to call me a nobody. He just had a lot on his mind.**

"Sure he didn't!" Growled Annabeth.

**"You ever meet your dad?" I asked.**

**"Once."**

**I waited, thinking that if he wanted to tell me, he'd tell me. Apparently, he didn't. I wondered if the story had anything to do with how he got his scar.**

Hermes looked towards the book eagerly, was it?

**Luke looked up and managed a smile. "Don't worry about it, Percy. The campers here, they're mostly good people. After all, we're extended family, right? We take care of each other."**

"The last time I checked, extended family don't try to kill each other!" Nico spat.

"That's rich coming from you corps breath!" Joked Thalia, but Nico still looked guilty. The gods looked on, intrigued by the exchange.

**He seemed to understand how lost I felt, and I was grateful for that, because an older guy like him—even if he was a counselor—should've steered clear of an uncool middle-schooler like me.**

"Yea right, you are much cooler than him!" Annabeth told the baby Percy who grinned happily in response before starting to play with her hair.

**But Luke had welcomed me into the cabin. He'd even stolen me some toiletries, which was the nicest thing anybody had done for me all day.**

"What about my daughter's tour?" Athena huffed.

**I decided to ask him my last big question, the one that had been bothering me all afternoon. "Clarisse, from Ares, was joking about me being 'Big Three' material. Then Annabeth ... twice, she said I might be 'the one.' She said I should talk to the Oracle. What was that all about?"**

**Luke folded his knife. "I hate prophecies."**

"HEY!" Rachel and Apollo shouted at the same time.

**"What do you mean?"**

**His face twitched around the scar. "Let's just say I messed things up for everybody else. The last two years, ever since my trip to the Garden of the Hesperides went sour,**

"Ladon!" Hermes growled.

**Chiron hasn't allowed any more quests. Annabeth's been dying to get out into the world. She pestered Chiron so much he finally told her he already knew her fate. He'd had a prophecy from the Oracle. He wouldn't tell her the whole thing, but he said Annabeth wasn't destined to go on a quest yet. She had to wait until...somebody special came to the camp."**

**"Somebody special?"**

**"Don't worry about it, kid," Luke said. "Annabeth wants to think every new camper who comes through here is the omen she's been waiting for. Now, come on, it's dinnertime."**

"Could it be dinner time now too?" Travis asked his dad. Hermes grinned and suddenly a big mac appeared in front of each of the demi-gods (with himself and Apollo included of course)

"You are not eating that Piper, think of all the calories!"

"Katie, that is not healthy, if you're going to eat something, eat some cerial!"

The two girls glared at their mothers and took huge bites out of the burgers, making all the gods laugh. Athena on the other hand, was too preoccupied watching her daughter feed French fries to a drooling Percy.

**The moment he said it, a horn blew in the distance. Somehow, I knew it was a conch shell, even though I'd never heard one before.**

**Luke yelled, "Eleven, fall in!"**

**The whole cabin, about twenty of us, filed into the commons yard. We lined up in order of seniority, so of course I was dead last. Campers came from the other cabins, too, except for the three empty cabins at the end, and cabin eight, which had looked normal in the daytime, but was now starting to glow silver as the sun went down.**

"I love my cabin!" Artemis sighed.

"It really is nice once you get inside!" Thalia agreed

**We marched up the hill to the mess hall pavilion. Satyrs joined us from the meadow. Naiads emerged from the canoeing lake. A few other girls came out of the woods—**

**and when I say out of the woods, I mean**_**straight**___**out of the woods. I saw one girl, about nine or ten years old, melt from the side of a maple tree and come skipping up the hill.**

**In all, there were maybe a hundred campers, a few dozen satyrs, and a dozen assorted wood nymphs and naiads.**

**At the pavilion, torches blazed around the marble columns. A central fire burned in a bronze brazier the size of a bathtub. Each cabin had its own table, covered in white cloth trimmed in purple. Four of the tables were empty, but cabin eleven's was way overcrowded. I had to squeeze on to the edge of a bench with half my butt hanging off.**

"A bit too much info Perce." Nico laughed.

**I saw Grover sitting at table twelve with Mr. D, a few satyrs, and a couple of plump blond boys who looked just like Mr. D.**

"Ah, my sons, Pollux and Castor." Dionysus sighed happily at the thought of his children, he did not notice the way that some of the demi-gods flinched at the last name.

**Chiron stood to one side, the picnic table being way too small for a centaur.**

**Annabeth sat at table six with a bunch of serious-looking athletic kids, all with her gray eyes and honey-blond hair.**

Athena smiled at the description of her children.

**Clarisse sat behind me at Ares's table. She'd apparently gotten over being hosed down, because she was laughing and belching right alongside her friends.**

Ares smiled proudly at how his daughter had bounced back, nothing would hold a child of Ares down, especially not a bit of water.

**Finally, Chiron pounded his hoof against the marble floor of the pavilion, and everybody fell silent. He raised a glass. "To the gods!"**

**Everybody else raised their glasses. "To the gods!"**

**Wood nymphs came forward with platters of food: grapes, apples, strawberries, cheese, fresh bread, and yes, barbecue! My glass was empty, but Luke said, "Speak to it. Whatever you want—nonalcoholic, of course."**

"Of course!" Dionysus grumbled, earning himself a glare from Zeus.

**I said, "Cherry Coke."**

**The glass filled with sparkling caramel liquid.**

**Then I had an idea. "**_**Blue**___**Cherry Coke."**

"Percy and his blue food!" Annabeth sighed, shaking her head. All the older demi-gods joined in.

**The soda turned a violent shade of cobalt.**

**I took a cautious sip. Perfect.**

**I drank a toast to my mother.**

Poseidon's face fell at the reminder.

**She's not gone, I told myself. Not permanently, anyway. She's in the Underworld. And if that's a real place, then someday...**

"Yes little boy, come to me!" Hades cackled.

"Dude, your dad is creepy!" Jason whispered to Nico who just grinned.

"Why thank you!"

**"Here you go, Percy," Luke said, handing me a platter of smoked brisket.**

**I loaded my plate and was about to take a big bite when I noticed everybody getting up, carrying their plates toward the fire in the center of the pavilion.**

**I wondered if they were going for dessert or something.**

Laughter filled the throne room.

**"Come on," Luke told me.**

**As I got closer, I saw that everyone was taking a portion of their meal and dropping it into the fire, the ripest straw berry, the juiciest slice of beef, the warmest, most buttery roll.**

**Luke murmured in my ear, "Burnt offerings for the gods. They like the smell."**

**"You're kidding."**

**His look warned me not to take this lightly, but I couldn't help wondering why an immortal, all-powerful being would like the smell of burning food.**

"Are you kidding? I love that stuff!" Apollo cheered. Will looked away, trying to pretend that they weren't related.

**Luke approached the fire, bowed his head, and tossed in a cluster of fat red grapes. "Hermes."**

Hermes smiled.

**I was next.**

**I wished I knew what god's name to say.**

"Poseidon." Everyone in the room cheered.

"Daddy!" came the call from Percy. Poseidon stood and did a mock bow at the call of his name.

**Finally, I made a silent plea.**_**Whoever you are, tell me. Please.**_

**I scraped a big slice of brisket into the flames.**

**When I caught a whiff of the smoke, I didn't gag.**

**It smelled nothing like burning food. It smelled of hot chocolate and fresh-baked brownies, hamburgers on the grill and wildflowers, and a hundred other good things that shouldn't have gone well together, but did. I could almost believe the gods could live off that smoke.**

Ares sighed. "food!"

"You want mine dad, I'm not hungry." Clarisse offered her unopened big mac to the war god who began eating happily, petting his daughter on the head.

**When everybody had returned to their seats and finished eating their meals, Chiron pounded his hoof again for our attention.**

**Mr. D got up with a huge sigh.**

"_Please don't say anything stupid!" _Dionysus prayed to his future self. He was already on thin ice with the others.

**"Yes, I suppose I'd better say hello to all you brats. Well, hello. Our activities director, Chiron, says the next capture the flag is Friday. Cabin five presently holds the laurels."**

"That's my kids!" Ares yelled. Clarisse just looked pleased with herself.

**A bunch of ugly cheering rose from the Ares table.**

**"Personally," Mr. D continued, "I couldn't care less, but congratulations. Also, I should tell you that we have a new camper today. Peter Johnson."**

All the demi-gods groaned, why could he never get their names right?

**Chiron murmured something.**

**"Er, Percy Jackson," Mr. D corrected. "That's right. Hurrah, and all that. Now run along to your silly campfire. Go on."**

**Everybody cheered. We all headed down toward the amphitheater, where Apollo's cabin led a sing-along.**

I bet it was a wicked sing along!" Apollo cheered.

**We sang camp songs about the gods and ate s'mores and joked around, and the funny thing was, I didn't feel that anyone was staring at me anymore. I felt that I was home.**

**Later in the evening, when the sparks from the campfire were curling into a starry sky, the conch horn blew again, and we all filed back to our cabins. I didn't realize how exhausted I was until I collapsed on my borrowed sleeping bag.**

**My fingers curled around the Minotaur's horn. I thought about my mom, but I had good thoughts: her smile, the bedtime stories she would read me when I was a kid, the way she would tell me not to let the bedbugs bite.**

**When I closed my eyes, I fell asleep instantly.**

**That was my first day at Camp Half-Blood.**

**I wish I'd known how briefly I would get to enjoy my new home.**

"Well, that doesn't sound good!" Poseidon whimpered. "could I have my son back now please?"

Unwillingly, Annabeth handed Percy over and took the book from Connor.

"Well, I guess it's my turn then. My name is Annabeth Chase, Daughter of Athena."

With that, she settled down into her chair and began to read. "We capture a flag."


	9. We Capture a Flag

**We Capture a Flag,**

Annabeth read before she broke off and smiled at the memory.

"You wish brat!" Ares snarled around his big mac.

"Well, as the chapter title suggests that they did, I'm guessing that you're wrong there Ares." Athena smirked at her brother. Ares just glared at her.

**The next few days I settled into a routine that felt almost normal, if you don't count the fact that I was getting lessons from satyrs, nymphs, and a centaur.**

"Yes, because that it is completely normal!" Sighed Nico, rolling his eyes.

**Each morning I took Ancient Greek from Annabeth, and we talked about the gods and goddesses in the present tense, which was kind of weird.**

"How rude, we are alive and here, why would you _not _talk about us in the present tense?" Artemis sniffed. "Though I guess I shouldn't expect too much from a _boy!" _She twisted the last word.

"Sowwy pwetty lady!"

Everyone turned to the small boy who was sitting on his father's lap, pouting at the goddess with puppy dog eyes.

"Fine!" She grumble in response.

**I discovered Annabeth was right**

"Remember that Seaweed Brain, I normal am!" Annabeth called to the child.

"Yes miss!"

Laughter filled the throne room at the bys response.

**about my dyslexia: Ancient Greek wasn't that hard for me to read. At least, no harder than English.**

"I still can't get over the fact that you can read in ancient Greek." Jason mumbled shaking his head.

"Says the boy who can read fluent Latin?" Thalia joked, poking her brother in the side.

**After a couple of mornings, I could stumble through a few lines of Homer without too much headache.**

"I've read the whole thing!" Travis bragged.

"Yes, but how long did it take you?" Katie joked.

"About a few years!" Answered Annabeth.

"Just read Annie!"

"Yes sir!"

**The rest of the day, I'd rotate through outdoor activities, looking for something I was good at.**

"That's going to take a while!" Joked Nico snidely.

"I don't remember you being any better!" Thalia scolded her cousin.

"Sorry Thals."

**Chiron tried to teach me archery, but we found out pretty quick I wasn't any good with a bow and arrow. He didn't complain, even when he had to de-snag a stray arrow out of his tail.**

"Percy, come here!" Apollo called. "We gotta fix that!"

A mini bow and arrow set appeared in the sun god's hands, glowing slightly in the pale light of the throne room. The baby Percy struggled against his father's arms. "Bow, bow!"

"No son, you're not going to play with them!"

"Aw, Daddy pwease!"

"Yes, daddy Pwease?" Mocked Apollo before he started chocking on a sudden downpour of water. "Hey, what was that for?"

"Nothing, I just like soaking you!"

"Thanks Uncle P!"

**Foot racing? No good either. The wood-nymph instructors left me in the dust. They told me not to worry about it. They'd had centuries of practice running away from lovesick gods. But still, it was a little humiliating to be slower than a tree.**

"It really is!" Commented Will.

**And wrestling? Forget it. Every time I got on the mat, Clarisse would pulverize me.**

"That was fun!" Mused Clarisse.

**"There's more where that came from, punk," she'd mumble in my ear.**

"Gods, La Rue, you sound so charming." Will commented with a quick smirk at Clarisse.

"Shut it Solace!"

"Yes Ma'am!"

**The only thing I really excelled at was canoeing, and that wasn't the kind of heroic skill people expected to see from the kid who had beaten the Minotaur.**

"Yeah, I remember watching him learn how to canoe, gods he was fast." Travis decided to add.

"We thought it was quite funny at the time, he was faster than the instructors." Connor agreed. Poseidon just smiled smugly, hugging his son tighter.

**I knew the senior campers and counselors were watching me, trying to decide who my dad was, but they weren't having an easy time of it.**

Poseidon nodded. "I bet they did, my kids aren't exactly obvious unlike some." He looked at Apollo playfully at this, "but if you make them mad, it soon becomes clear!"

"What I want to know is, how did they not figure it out after what happened with the toilets?" Athena stated.

"No idea Mom, but I had my suspicions!"

**I wasn't as strong as the Ares kids,**

"Gods forbid!" Ares growled.

**or as good at archery as the Apollo kids.**

"Well you _would _be if someone wasn't so strict about letting 2 year olds have weapons!"

"Not going to happen Apollo!"

"Anyway, my hunters are better archers!" And so began the millennia old argument once again.

**I didn't have Hephaestus's skill with metalwork**

"No, you wouldn't." Hephaestus nodded happily, "My kids are amazing!"

"Thanks dad!"

**or-gods forbid- Dionysus's way with vine plants.**

"Feelings mutual kid! If you were my son, I would kill you myself!"

"Yes, but he isn't _your _son, he is _mine _and if you do kill him, you will have me to answer. Got that?"

The wine god gulped. "Yes uncle!"

**Luke told me I might be a child of Hermes, a kind of jack-of-all-trades, master of none.**

"Hey, I'm not that bad!"

"Dad, that's true!" Connor called out.

"Oh yeah, woops!"

**But I got the feeling he was just trying to make me feel better. He really didn't know what to make of me either.**

**Despite all that, I liked camp. I got used to the morning fog over the beach, the smell of hot strawberry fields in the afternoon, even the weird noises of monsters in the woods at night. I would eat dinner with cabin eleven, scrape part of my meal into the fire, and try to feel some connection to my real dad. Nothing came. Just that warm feeling I'd always had, like the memory of his smile.**

"You have no respect for ancient rules do you brother?" Zeus glared at the sea god who was playing peek-a-boo with his infant son.

"Nope!"

**I tried not to think too much about my mom, but I kept wondering: if gods and monsters were real, if all this magical stuff was possible, surely there was some way to save her, to bring her back...**

Poseidon groans. "Just give up on that plan Percy!"

"Oh, come on, I'm not _that _bad!" Hades complained.

"You kidnapped the boy's mother brother, if you are not that bad, you wouldn't keep stealing people!" Demeter chimed in glaring at her brother in disgust. To avoid the start of another ancient argument, Annabeth read on.

**I started to understand Luke's bitterness and how he seemed to resent his father, Hermes. So okay, maybe gods had important things to do.**

**But couldn't they call once in a while, or thunder, or something?**

The Olympians glared at Zeus.

"Well we would, if _someone _would let us!" Athena spat.

**Dionysus could make Diet Coke appear out of thin air. Why couldn't my dad, whoever he was, make a phone appear?**

"Sorry Percy!" Poseidon mumbled to his son, bowing his head in shame.

"S'okay Daddy!"

**Thursday afternoon, three days after I'd arrived at Camp Half-Blood, I had my first sword-fighting lesson. Every-body from cabin eleven gathered in the big circular arena, where Luke would be our instructor.**

"Ah, my precious boy" Hermes sighed.

"Thanks dad!" Travis mumbled.

"Yeah, real appreciated!" Connor Added.

"Sorry boys."

"Yeah, yeah." The two boys glared at their father who was trying, and failing, to look contrite. Everyone else noticed that the atmosphere around the demi-gods suddenly went dark.

**We started with basic stabbing and slashing, using some straw-stuffed dummies in Greek armor. I guess I did okay. At least, I understood what I was supposed to do and my reflexes were good.**

"My kids are always good with swords!" Smirked Poseidon.

"Not as good as mine!" Zeus challenged. "Ow, Thalia! Stop that!"

"Sorry Daddy!" Thalia smiled smugly.

**The problem was, I couldn't find a blade that felt right in my hands. Either they were too heavy, or too light, or too long. Luke tried his best to fix me up, but he agreed that none of the practice blades seemed to work for me.**

"From the sound of it, Percy always uses a sword, so why would he use a weapon that doesn't feel right?" Jason asked.

"You'll see!" Annabeth smiled before reading again.

**We moved on to dueling in pairs. Luke announced he would be my partner, since this was my first time.**

"Wow, he's _so _generous!" Nico mocked, glaring at Hermes.

**"Good luck," one of the campers told me. "Luke's the best swordsman in the last three hundred years."**

"Ugh, I don't want to admit it, but that was me." Travis sighed.

"See, we can master some things! I am so proud of you my son!" Hermes grinned like a fool.

Athena studied the faces of the children, _why is there such a reaction when ever his name is mentioned?_

**"Maybe he'll go easy on me," I said.**

"You have more chances of Clarisse going easy on you seaweed brain!" Annabeth spat out.

"Yea… HEY! Don't compare me to him wise girl!"

"Sorry La Rue, but I'm not saying it isn't true!"

**The camper snorted.**

"In my defense, I didn't know how good Perce was at the time." Travis shrugged.

**Luke showed me thrusts and parries and shield blocks the hard way. With every swipe, I got a little more battered and bruised. "Keep your guard up, Percy," he'd say, then whap me in the ribs with the flat of his blade. "No, not that far up!" Whap! "Lunge!" Whap! "Now, back!" Whap!**

"Got to love his sound effects!" Nico joked.

**By the time he called a break, I was soaked in sweat. Everybody swarmed the drinks cooler. Luke poured ice water on his head, which looked like such a good idea, I did the same.**

Poseidon laughed. "Now this is going to be fun!" The Stoll brothers nodded along with him, they still remembered it.

**Instantly, I felt better. Strength surged back into my arms. The sword didn't feel so awkward.**

Hermes groaned, "No fair Uncle P, your son cheated!"

"Me no cheat! Percy good boy!"

"Sure you are baby cuz, sure you are!"

"Says the god of cheats and thieves!" Poseidon laughed.

"Low blow, uncle P, low blow!"

"Thank you nephew!"

"Not a compliment!"

**"Okay, everybody circle up!" Luke ordered. "If Percy doesn't mind, I want to give you a little demo."**

Poseidon barked out a laugh, "Bring it on boy!"

**Great, I thought. Let's all watch Percy get pounded.**

"Gods I love that show!" Will laughed.

**The Hermes guys gathered around. They were suppressing smiles. I figured they'd been in my shoes before and couldn't wait to see how Luke used me for a punching bag.**

Connor winced, "Been there, done that!"

**He told everybody he was going to demonstrate a disarming technique: how to twist the enemy's blade with the flat of your own sword so that he had no choice but to drop his weapon.**

"A good move!" Ares admitted grudgingly.

**"This is difficult," he stressed. "I've had it used against me. No laughing at Percy, now. Most swordsmen have to work years to master this technique. "**

"It's not that difficult!" Thalia complained.

"It's a technique that takes decades to learn godling!" Ares growled.

"Not my fault, I use bow!" Thalia countered.

**He demonstrated the move on me in slow motion. Sure enough, the sword clattered out of my hand.**

"Why would you show them such a difficult technique?" Athena wondered aloud.

**"Now in real time," he said, after I'd retrieved my weapon. "We keep sparring until one of us pulls it off. Ready, Percy?"**

"You bet he is!" Poseidon smirked at his son who started giggling in his arms.

"Weady Daddy!"

**I nodded, and Luke came after me. Somehow, I kept him from getting a shot at the hilt of my sword. My senses opened up.**

Ares leaned forward, intrigued.

**I saw his attacks coming. I countered. I stepped forward and tried a thrust of my own. Luke deflected it easily, but I saw a change in his face. His eyes narrowed, and he started to press me with more force.**

Annabeth and Thalia looked at each other uneasily, so Luke_ had _noticed then.

**The sword grew heavy in my hand. The balance wasn't right. I knew it was only a matter of seconds before Luke took me down, so I figured, What the heck?**

**I tried the disarming maneuver.**

**My blade hit the base of Luke's and I twisted, putting my whole weight into a downward thrust.**

**Clang.**

"It takes decades to learn does it brother?" Athena smiled sweetly.

"We were all so shocked." Claimed Connor while Travis nodded in the background.

"Luke's face was priceless."

**Luke's sword rattled against the stones. The tip of my blade was an inch from his undefended chest.**

"I like this kid!" Hephaestus stated.

**The other campers were silent.**

"Well, that proves it, _Percy _is the best swords man in the last 300 years!" Annabeth smiled proudly. A look that Athena did not miss, _they're just friends, _she reassured herself, _nothing more._

**I lowered my sword. "Um, sorry."**

"Only Percy could do that!" Laughed Nico.

**For a moment, Luke was too stunned to speak.**

"**Sorry?" His scarred face broke into a grin. "By the gods, Percy, why are you sorry? Show me that again!"**

**I didn't want to. The short burst of manic energy had completely abandoned me. But Luke insisted.**

"The water ran out!" Athena explained, even though no one was asking.

**This time, there was no contest. The moment our swords connected, Luke hit my hilt and sent my weapon skidding across the floor.**

**After a long pause, somebody in the audience said, "Beginner's luck?"**

"How I wish I hadn't said that!" Sighed Will.

"Why were you there?" Artemis asked.

"No reason!" His smile was a little too innocent.

"Unfortunately, Percy is the luckiest beginner I have ever seen!" Clarisse grumbled.

**Luke wiped the sweat off his brow. He appraised at me with an entirely new interest. "Maybe," he said. "But I wonder what Percy could do with a balanced sword..."**

"Don't worry Luke, you'll soon find out!" The tone of Nico's voice was so evil that no one even dared question it, even when he broke out into some manic laughter.

"That's my boy!" Cheered Hades, the only one in the room not looking slightly disturbed.

**Friday afternoon, I was sitting with Grover at the lake, resting from a near-death experience on the climbing wall.**

"I hate that wall!" Piper complained.

"Don't we all beauty queen!" smirked Travis.

**Grover had scampered to the top like a mountain goat, but the lava had almost gotten me. My shirt had smoking holes in it. The hairs had been singed off my forearms.** **We sat on the pier,**

"Why does he always return to the water?" Hera asked.

"He must really love his father!" Reasoned Hestia.

"The feeling is definitely mutual my boy!" Poseidon chuckled kissing the boy on the top of his head.

"Ewwwww, bad Daddy!"

"Sorry son." Once again, laughter filled the room at the 2.

**watching the naiads do underwater basket-weaving, until I got up the nerve to ask Grover how his conversation had gone with Mr. D.**

**His face turned a sickly shade of yellow.**

"The poor Satyr, you must have terrified him nephew!" Demeter cooed then glared at Dionysus.

"Sorry?"

**"Fine," he said. "Just great."**

"You really do need to treat them better!" Hestia agreed with her sister.

**"So your career's still on track?"**

**He glanced at me nervously. "Chiron t-told you I want a searcher's license?"**

**"Well... No."**

**I had no idea what a searcher's license was, but it didn't seem like the right time to ask.**

"Wow, the idiot actually used tact of once in his life!" Thalia's eyes looked ready to pop out of her head.

"You do know that he can use it sometimes!" Annabeth defended her boyfriend.

_Just friends, _thought Athena, _nothing more._

Hearing this, Aphrodite smirked. _Just keep telling you that sister!_

**"He just said you had big plans, you know ... And that you needed credit for completing a keeper's assignment. So did you get it?"**

**Grover looked down at the naiads.**

"Hmm… nice match, I think," Aphrodite muses.

The older Greek demigods look at each other, remembering Juniper and thinking that she would _not_ be happy with Grover _or_ the Love Goddess.

**"Mr. D suspended judgment. He said I hadn't failed or succeeded with you yet, so our fates were still tied together. If you got a quest and I went along to protect you, and we both came back alive, then maybe he'd consider the job complete."**

"That he did!" Annabeth smiled.

_Just friends!_

**My spirits lifted. "Well, that's not so bad, right?"**

**"Blaa-ha-ha! He might as well have transferred me to stable-cleaning duty. The chances of you getting a quest... And even if you did, why would you want me along?"**

"Oh, I don't know, maybe because you're his best friend Grover!" Thalia sighed, rolling her eyes.

**"Of course I'd want you along!"**

"Aw, you have such a sweet boy brother." Hestia cooed, tickling the baby under the chin. Baby Percy stretched his arms out, hugging his new friend.

"Thank you!"

**Grover stared glumly into the water. "Basket-weaving ... Must be nice to have a useful skill."**

"Good taste in skills satyr!" Athena nodded smugly. This time, it was Annabeth's turn to roll her eyes.

**I tried to reassure him that he had lots of talents, but that just made him look more miserable. We talked about canoeing and swordplay for a while, then debated the pros and cons of the different gods.**

"Pros and cons? Really?" Laughed Connor.

"Maybe they were playing Nico's stupid game?" Joined in Travis.

"HEY, Mythomagic is _not _stupid!" Nico shouted, be he too was laughing.

"I want to hear that conversation now!" Whined Hermes.

**Finally, I asked him about the four empty cabins.**

**"Number eight, the silver one, belongs to Artemis," he said. "She vowed to be a maiden forever.**

"Obviously, there is no need for me in my life thank you very much!" Sniffed Artemis while Thalia nodded in the background. Zeus looked at both his daughters with a pained expression.

"What you mean is, you just never grew up. Am I right lil sis?" Apollo asked before a huge ball of water smacked him in the face. "Hey, uncle P, what was that for?"

Poseidon shrugged. "Don't look at me!"

The giggling drew everyone's attention to where baby Percy was sat with his aunt, clapping his hands.

"That's my boy!" Cheered Poseidon.

**So of course, no kids. The cabin is, you know, honorary. If she didn't have one, she'd be mad."**

"Hey, he makes the cabin sound useless!" Artemis shouted.

"Yeah, that's my home he's talking about!" complained Thalia.

**"Yeah, okay. But the other three, the ones at the end. Are those the Big Three?**

That got a laugh, but, of course, Hera was fuming. Hestia decided to hide the boy behind the protection of her arms, unsure of how her sister would react.

**Grover tensed. We were getting close to a touchy subject. "No. One of them, number two, is Hera's," he said. "That's another honorary thing. She's the goddess of marriage, so of course she wouldn't go around having affairs with mortals.**

"Obviously, I keep my promises, unlike _some _people!" She shot a dirty look round at her family.

**That's her husband's job.**

"HEY!"

"Oh, shut it dad, you know it's true!"

Zeus just glared at his youngest daughter.

**When we say the Big Three, we mean the three powerful brothers, the sons of Kronos."**

"Yes, but could someone have reminded him that we were his _children _not his _food!"_ Hades muttered darkly.

"Hey, doesn't that make him our grandfather?" Apollo asked. Thalia, Jason and Nico all shuddered at the idea.

"NEVER say that again!" Ares threatened his brother.

**"Zeus, Poseidon, Hades."**

**"Right. You know. After the great battle with the Titans, they took over the world from their dad and drew lots to decide who got what."**

Hades opened his mouth and looked about to say something, but, to avoid the ae old argument, Annabeth quickly read on.

**"Zeus got the sky," I remembered. "Poseidon the sea, Hades the Underworld."**

**"Uh-huh."**

**"But Hades doesn't have a cabin here."**

"yes." Nico sniffed, pretending to be sad. "I'm a homeless child!"

"You could always come to live with me." Hades offered, a strange gleam in his eye.

"No thanks dad, I'm good!" His son replied hastily, getting a laugh from his demi-god friends.

**"No. He doesn't have a throne on Olympus, either. He sort of does his own thing down in the Underworld. If he did have a cabin here ..." Grover shuddered. "Well, it wouldn't be pleasant. Let's leave it at that."**

**"But Zeus and Poseidon-they both had, like, a bazillion kids in the myths.**

"Children that should never have existed if you respected your wedding vows!" Hera burst out.

"Thanks lady Hera, really feeling the love here!" Thalia called out.

Nico leaned over and poked Jason in the side. "Hey, if Zeus is your dad, doesn't that make Hera your step-mom?"

Jason shuddered, "Don't even go there!"

**Why are their cabins empty?"**

**Grover shifted his hooves uncomfortably. "About sixty years ago, after World War II, the Big Three agreed they wouldn't sire any more heroes.**

"Well that worked!" Commented Will.

"I like the fact that I am the only one who _didn't _break the oath!" Hades glared at his brothers.

"What on earth are you talking about, your son is right there!" Zeus pointed at Nico.

"Um, with all due respect uncle, I was born _before _the oath. Dad just put me in the den of the lotus eaters!" Nico called out, defending his father. Zeus leaned back in his chair grumbling about not being able to trust family. Hades shot a grateful look at his son.

**Their children were just too powerful. They were affecting the course of human events too much, causing too much carnage. World War II, you know, that was basically a fight between the sons of Zeus and Poseidon on one side, and the sons of Hades on the other. The winning side, Zeus and Poseidon, made Hades swear an oath with them: no more affairs with mortal women. They all swore on the River Styx."**

"Which means that our lives are cursed!" Thalia glared at her father.

"Sorry?"

"Not going to cut it dad!"

**Thunder boomed.**

**I said, "That's the most serious oath you can make."**

"Wow, Percy actually knows something!" Leo joked, clutching his heart.

**Grover nodded.**

**"And the brothers kept their word-no kids?"**

"If they had, I wouldn't have been a tree!" Thalia stated bluntly.

**Grover's face darkened. "Seventeen years ago, Zeus fell off the wagon.**

Zeus looked at the ground guiltily.

**There was this TV starlet with a big fluffy eighties hairdo-he just couldn't help himself.**

"Why do I even let you out?" Hera growled at her brother/ husband.

"Because you love me?"

2Oh, and that excuse _never _gets old!"

**When their child was born, a little girl named Thalia... Well, the River Styx is serious about promises. Zeus himself got off easy because he's immortal, but he brought a terrible fate on his daughter."**

"Sorry?"

"Still not happening dad!"

**"But that isn't fair. It wasn't the little girl's fault."**

"Little?" Snarled Thalia.

"Thals, you look like a 16 year old, give him a break!" Annabeth chided her.

_Just friends._

**Grover hesitated. "Percy, children of the Big Three have powers greater than other half-bloods. They have a strong aura, a scent that attracts monsters. When Hades found out about the girl, he wasn't too happy about Zeus breaking his oath. Hades let the worst monsters out of Tartarus to torment Thalia.**

Zeus glared at Hades who just smirked, "If you will break the oath!"

**A satyr was assigned to be her keeper when she was twelve, but there was nothing he could do. He tried to escort her here with a couple of other half-bloods she'd befriended.**

Annabeth stopped there looking more than a little sad. She didn't continue until Thalia came and hugged her tight.

**They almost made it. They got all the way to the top of that hill."**

Thalia winced.

**He pointed across the valley, to the pine tree where I'd fought the minotaur. "All three Kindly Ones were after them, along with a horde of hellhounds.**

"I hate you!" Zeus spat at his brother.

"I know."

**They were about to be overrun when Thalia told her satyr to take the other two half-bloods to safety while she held off the monsters. She was wounded and tired, and she didn't want to live like a hunted animal.**

"Which I still don't!" Thalia informed the room. Zeus looked at his daughter apologetically.

**The satyr didn't want to leave her, but he couldn't change her mind, and he had to protect the others. So Thalia made her final stand alone, at the top of that hill. As she died, Zeus took pity on her.**

"OW! Look daughter, I really am sorry about the monsters, but I did my best to save you. Why are you so angry?"

"Didn't it ever occur to you that I didn't _want _to be saved?" The girl looked like she was about to cry. I was her turn now to b comforted by her friends.

**He turned her into that pine tree. Her spirit still helps protect the borders of the valley. That's why the hill is called Half-Blood Hill."**

**I stared at the pine in the distance.**

**The story made me feel hollow, and guilty too. A girl my age had sacrificed herself to save her friends.**

"You two really are alike!" Annabeth joked poking Thalia.

"The best of friends or worst rivals!" Came the reply.

**She had faced a whole army of monsters. Next to that, my victory over the Minotaur didn't seem like much.**

"SO that's what he thinks when hearing my story!" Thalia, having recovered some of her good mood, rolled her eyes at the boy's thought process.

**I wondered, if I'd acted differently, could I have saved my mother?**

**"Grover," I said, "have heroes really gone on quests to the Underworld?"**

Poseidon groans. "Not again."

Hades looked at the baby in Hestia's arms. "Yes boy, come to me!"

"Scawwy!" Came the screech that set off the laughter once again.

**"Sometimes," he said. "Orpheus. Hercules. Houdini."**

Hades smiled at the memory.

**"And have they ever returned somebody from the dead?"**

**"No. Never. Orpheus came close... Percy, you're not seriously thinking-"**

**"No," I lied. "I was just wondering. So ... A satyr is always assigned to guard a demigod?"**

**Grover studied me warily. I hadn't persuaded him that I'd really dropped the Underworld idea. "Not always. We go undercover to a lot of schools. We try to sniff out the half-bloods who have the makings of great heroes. If we find one with a very strong aura, like a child of the Big Three, we alert Chiron. He tries to keep an eye on them, since they could cause really huge problems."**

"Thanks Grover!"

"Well, you can't say it isn't true!" Will stated.

"Not my point!"

**"And you found me. Chiron said you thought I might be something special."**

**Grover looked as if I'd just led him into a trap. "I didn't... Oh, listen, don't think like that. If you were-you know-you'd never ever be allowed a quest, and I'd never get my license. You're probably a child of Hermes. Or maybe even one of the minor gods, like Nemesis, the god of revenge.**

"Um, I'm glad Lady Nemesis wasn't there to hear that. She is the _goddess _of _balance _not revenge." Annabeth laughed along with the others.

**Don't worry, okay?"**

"Like that will work!" Travis rolled his eyes at Grover's foolishness.

**I got the idea he was reassuring himself more than me.**

**That night after dinner, there was a lot more excitement than usual.**

**At last, it was time for capture the flag.**

"BEST GAME EVER!" Declared Katie.

"What do you know, you never join in!" Travis teased.

"I join in enough to kick your butt Stoll!"

"LANGUAGE daughter!"

"Sorry Mom."

**When the plates were cleared away, the conch horn sounded and we all stood at our tables.**

**Campers yelled and cheered as Annabeth and two of her siblings ran into the pavilion carrying a silk banner. It was about ten feet long, glistening gray, with a painting of a barn owl above an olive tree.**

"h great, bird brain is leading the team!" Poseidon muttered earning a glare from the goddess.

**From the opposite side of the pavilion, Clarisse and her buddies ran in with another banner, of identical size, but gaudy red, painted with a bloody spear and a boar's head.**

"YES! Go kids!" Roared Ares.

**I turned to Luke and yelled over the noise, "Those are the flags?"**

**"Yeah."**

**"Ares and Athena always lead the teams?"**

**"Not always," he said. "But often."**

"Because we rule!" whooped Ares.

Athena sighed, but smiled. "No comment there."

**"So, if another cabin captures one, what do you do- repaint the flag?"**

"That would be fun!" Mused Travis.

"And messy." Piper felt the need to add.

**He grinned. "You'll see. First we have to get one."**

**"Whose side are we on?"**

**He gave me a sly look, as if he knew something I didn't. The scar on his face made him look almost evil in the torchlight.**

"Wow, Percy actually said something intelligent!" Breathed Annabeth, making the others that heard snicker.

**"We've made a temporary alliance with Athena. Tonight, we get the flag from Ares. And you are going to help."**

"He really was a big help!" Annabeth told everyone.

_Just friends_ the chant in Athena's head continued. _She said they were just friends!_

**The teams were announced. Athena had made an alliance with Apollo and Hermes, the two biggest cabins.**

"Oh yeah, we rule!" Cheered Apollo.

"You do know that wasn't a complement, right dad?"

Apollo looked at Will skeptically. "What you need to learn son, is that everything is a compliment if you chose to take it as such!"

**Apparently, privileges had been traded-shower times, chore schedules, the best slots for activities-in order to win support.**

**Ares had allied themselves with everybody else: Dionysus, Demeter, Aphrodite, and Hephaestus. From what I'd seen, Dionysus's kids were actually good athletes, but there were only two of them.**

"Pollux and Castor," nods Dionysus again smiling proudly.

Athena noticed the way that the kids all flinched at the last name _hmmm, something isn't right here, first Hermes' boy and now this one. Just what is it?_

**Demeter's kids had the edge with nature skills and outdoor stuff but they weren't very aggressive.**

"Good for you. I would hate it if you went out starting fights like heathens!" Demeter nodded primly at Katie.

"Thanks Lady Demeter!" Clarisse grumbled as her dad jumped to his feet in protest.

"What is wrong with fights?"

**Aphrodite's sons and daughters I wasn't too worried about. They mostly sat out every activity and checked their reflections in the lake and did their hair and gossiped.**

"Excuse me?" choked Piper.

"Face it Piper, your siblings won't be awarded man of the match any time soon!" Nico told her. "They all just sit around and do their make up all the time!"

"Good point." She then turned to her mother. "Please tell me I'm adopted?"

"Sorry, no can do Pipes, you're mine!"

"Brilliant!"

**Hephaestus's kids weren't pretty, and there were only four of them, but they were big and burly from working in the metal shop all day. They might be a problem. **

Hephaestus nodded happily.

**That, of course, left Ares's cabin: a dozen of the biggest, ugliest, meanest kids on Long Island, or anywhere else on the planet.**

"Yes, my kids are the best!"

"Yes, yes we are!"

**Chiron hammered his hoof on the marble.**

**"Heroes!" he announced. "You know the rules. The creek is the boundary line. The entire forest is fair game. All magic items are allowed.**

"I hate that rule, it means that _she _can do anything she wants." Clarisse grumbled jerking her thumb at Annabeth who just grinned and continued reading.

**The banner must be prominently displayed, and have no more than two guards. Prisoners may be disarmed, but may not be bound or gagged. No killing or maiming is allowed.**

"Kill joy!" Ares whined, drawing slightly scared looks from his siblings.

**I will serve as referee and battlefield medic.**

"Hey, my kids are much better healers!" Complained Apollo.

"Brother, you seem to have forgotten that your children are competing!" Artemis reminded him.

"Oh yeah…"

**Arm yourselves!"**

**He spread his hands, and the tables were suddenly covered with equipment: helmets, bronze swords, spears, oxhide shields coated in metal.**

**"Whoa," I said. "We're really supposed to use these?"**

"wow, he really is an idiot!" Remarked Athena.

**Luke looked at me as if I were crazy. "Unless you want to get skewered by your friends in cabin five.**

"Hey, I'm more of his friend than you are!" Clarisse snarled. "I didn't try to kill him countless times!"

"Suuuure you didn't!" Travis rolled his eyes.

"Shut it Stoll!"

**Here-Chiron thought these would fit. You'll be on border patrol."**

**My shield was the size of an NBA backboard, with a big caduceus in the middle. It weighed about a million pounds. I could have snowboarded on it fine, but I hoped nobody seriously expected me to run fast.**

"Why would you want to run from a fight?" Ares asked.

"not all of us are war mongers Ares!" Chided Artemis.

"Yeah, because you're not cool enough to be!"

**My helmet, like all the helmets on Athena's side, had a blue horsehair plume on top. Ares and their allies had red plumes.**

**Annabeth yelled, "Blue team, forward!"**

"Why were you in charge Annie?" Asked Leo. Annabeth just shrugged.

"I'd been there longer, and it was my plan we were using."

**We cheered and shook our swords and followed her down the path to the south woods. The red team yelled taunts at us as they headed off toward the north.**

**I managed to catch up with Annabeth without tripping over my equipment. "Hey."**

**She kept marching.**

"Yes." Athena nodded. "Stay away from the sea rat!"

Annabeth rolled her eyes but decided to be the better person and refrained from commenting.

**"So what's the plan?" I asked. "Got any magic items you can loan me?"**

**Her hand drifted toward her pocket, as if she were afraid I'd stolen something.**

"I wasn't too sure who his dad was at the time!" Annabeth defended herself, looking at Hermes.

"No problem, I wish he were my kid!"

"Well, too bad, he's mine!"

"Yes uncle P, we know that!"

**"Just watch Clarisse's spear," she said. "You don't want that thing touching you.**

"I loved that spear!" Sighed Clarisse.

**Otherwise, don't worry. We'll take the banner from Ares.**

"HA, I'D LOVE TO SEE YOU TRY LITTLE GIRL!" Ares challenged.

"Well brother, maybe if you let my daughter finish, you will!" Athena shot back.

**Has Luke given you your job?"**

**"Border patrol, whatever that means."**

"It means, seaweed brain, that you have the most important job." Laughed Annabeth before continuing.

**"It's easy. Stand by the creek, keep the reds away. Leave the rest to me. Athena always has a plan."**

Athena nods approvingly before sticking her tongue out at Ares. "Yup."

Annabeth tried to ignore the fact that her mother was acting like a small child and just carried on.

**She pushed ahead, leaving me in the dust.**

**"Okay," I mumbled. "Glad you wanted me on your team."**

"Ooooh, I bet he's feeling heartbroken!" Giggled Aphrodite, causing Annabeth to blush scarlet.

_Just friends._

**It was a warm, sticky night. The woods were dark, with fireflies popping in and out of view. Annabeth stationed me next to a little creek that gurgled over some rocks, then she and the rest of the team scattered into the trees.**

"Why is he left on his own in his first game?" Poseidon glared at the daughter of Athena who just shrugged.

"All part of the plan sir."

**Standing there alone, with my big blue-feathered helmet and my huge shield, I felt like an idiot. The bronze sword, like all the swords I'd tried so far, seemed balanced wrong.**

"Oh, quit whining you little baby!" Scolded Ares "Deal with it!"

**The leather grip pulled on my hand like a bowling ball.**

**There was no way anybody would actually attack me, would they? I mean, Olympus had to have liability issues, right?**

"Nope!" Apollo sang happily. "I mean, who would sue _us? _We _are _their parents!"

**Far away, the conch horn blew.**

**I heard whoops and yells in the woods, the clanking of metal, kids fighting. A blue-plumed ally from Apollo raced past me like a deer, leaped through the creek, and disappeared into enemy territory.**

"I love my kids!" cheers Apollo.

Will shifted uncomfortably, "I think that was me!"

**Great, I thought. I'll miss all the fun, as usual.**

"Wait, wasn't he just complaining about not wanting to get in a fight?" Asked Hestia before turning to the sleepy boy in her arms, "You need to learn to make up your mind boy!"

"okay!"

**Then I heard a sound that sent a chill up my spine, a low canine growl, somewhere close by.**

Hades' eyes narrowed, he didn't like the sound of that.

**I raised my shield instinctively; I had the feeling something was stalking me.**

**Then the growling stopped. I felt the presence retreating.**

**On the other side of the creek, the underbrush exploded. Five Ares warriors came yelling and screaming out of the dark.**

Ares begins to laugh darkly.

**"Cream the punk!" Clarisse screamed.**

"YES! CREAM THE PUNK!" her father shouts. Clarisse shifted in her chair remembering what happened next.

**Her ugly pig eyes glared through the slits of her helmet.**

Clarisse growls. "Oh, Prissy, you are _so _gonna pay for that!"

Nico snorted. "Like you've ever beaten him in a fight!"

"Shut it worm!"

**She brandished a five-foot-long spear, its barbed metal tip flickering with red light.**

Ares nods he _did _have a spear like that.

**Her siblings had only the standard-issue bronze swords-not that that made me feel any better.**

**They charged across the stream. There was no help in sight. I could run. Or I could defend myself against half the Ares cabin.**

"You are so dead punk!" Ares grinned.

**I managed to sidestep the first kid's swing, but these guys were not as stupid the Minotaur.**

"Wow, they could've fooled me!" Joked Travis before he got a slap round the head.

**They surrounded me, and Clarisse thrust at me with her spear. My shield deflected the point, but I felt a painful tingling all over my body. My hair stood on end. My shield arm went numb, and the air burned.**

"Wimp!" Laughed Thalia, "That wouldn't hurt me!"

"Yes, well, we aren't all immune to electricity Thals!" Annabeth reminded her.

"Oh yeah…"

**Electricity. Her stupid spear was electric.**

"HEY! I resent that Prissy!"

"Well, we resent you, but you don't see us complaining!" Will whispered to the Stoll making them laugh hard.

**I fell back.**

"YES! KILL HIM!" Ares yells.

**Another Ares guy slammed me in the chest with the butt of his sword and I hit the dirt.**

"GO KID!" Ares cheers, completely immersed in the fight.

**They could've kicked me into jelly, but they were too busy laughing.**

**"Give him a haircut," Clarisse said. "Grab his hair."**

"You better not!" Poseidon warned the girl.

"Sorry sir."

**I managed to get to my feet. I raised my sword, but Clarisse slammed it aside with her spear as sparks flew. Now both my arms felt numb.**

Poseidon growls menacingly.

**"Oh, wow," Clarisse said. "I'm scared of this guy. Really scared."**

"Oh, you should be," murmurs Annabeth to herself making Thalia and Nico laugh.

**"The flag is that way," I told her. I wanted to sound angry, but I was afraid it didn't come out that way.**

"He did WHAT?" Athena snarled, "NEVER GIVE AWAY YOUR POSITION!"

**"Yeah," one of her siblings said. "But see, we don't care about the flag. We care about a guy who made our cabin look stupid."**

"Like you need any help!" Scoffed Poseidon.

**"You do that without my help," I told them.**

Poseidon grins sheepishly.

"And so the sea spawn thinks like his father!" Concludes Athena.

**It probably wasn't the smartest thing to say.**

"Of course not, you're a sea spawn!" Reasoned Athena. Annabeth rolled her eyes again.

**Two of them came at me. I backed up toward the creek, tried to raise my shield, but Clarisse was too fast. Her spear stuck me straight in the ribs. If I hadn't been wearing an armored breastplate, I would've been shish-ke-babbed.**

"And yet another exciting insight into how Percy's mind works. Such strange similes!" Nico laughed shaking his head.

**As it was, the electric point just about shocked my teeth out of my mouth. One of her cabin mates slashed his sword across my arm, leaving a good-size cut.**

**Seeing my own blood made me dizzy-warm and cold at the same time.**

"Baby!" Cheered Ares.

Thalia went to attack her half brother, but was stopped by Annabeth.

"Wait, he will regret that later!"

**"No maiming," I managed to say.**

**"Oops," the guy said. "Guess I lost my dessert privilege."**

"Desert privilege?" What kind of deterrent is that?" Hera asked her son who just shrugged.

"Perhaps I will change it when I get back."

"You better!"

**He pushed me into the creek and I landed with a splash. They all laughed. I figured as soon as they were through being amused, I would die.**

Poseidon begins to chuckle. "Oh, now the times have changed."

Ares leans back in his throne, his face surly. "Cheat!"

**But then something happened. The water seemed to wake up my senses, as if I'd just had a bag of my mom's double-espresso jelly beans.**

"Strange comparison!" Mused Artemis.

"I want some jell beans now!" Apollo whined.

**Clarisse and her cabinmates came into the creek to get me, but I stood to meet them. I knew what to do. I swung the flat of my sword against the first guy's head and knocked his helmet clean off. I hit him so hard I could see his eyes vibrating as he crumpled into the water.**

"Wow" gasps Piper. "That was some hit!"

"Why does he get all the cool powers?" Jason complained. "We don't get a power up from air!"

"my kids are just that cool!" Came the reply.

**Ugly Number Two and Ugly Number Three came at me.**

Ares growled "Those are my kids you're talking about punk!"

"So it's a fitting description then?" Asked Hermes innocently.

**I slammed one in the face with my shield and used my sword to shear off the other guy's horsehair plume. Both of them backed up quick. Ugly Number Four didn't look really anxious to attack, but Clarisse kept coming, the point of her spear crackling with energy.**

"Only you would continue to attack in that situation!" Annabeth laughed. Clarisse Scowled at her boots while the others laughed.

**As soon as she thrust, I caught the shaft between the edge of my shield and my sword, and I snapped it like a twig.**

"You broke my daughter's spear, you maggot!" Ares yelled at the baby.

"Scawwy!" The boy cried, hiding behind his aunts arms.

"Stop it, you're scaring the boy Ares!"

**"Ah!" she screamed. "You idiot! You corpse-breath worm!"**

"Hey, that's me!" Nico called, faking sadness. "Good to see you care La Rue!"

**She probably would've said worse, but I smacked her between the eyes with my sword-butt and sent her stumbling backward out of the creek.**

**Then I heard yelling, elated screams, and I saw Luke racing toward the boundary line with the red team's banner lifted high. He was flanked by a couple of Hermes guys covering his retreat, and a few Apollos behind them, fighting off the Hephaestus kids.**

"I bet my kids would have won if they had had enough time!," Hephaestus Stated!

"You wish furnace boy!" Apollo cheered good naturedly.

**The Ares folks got up, and Clarisse muttered a dazed curse.**

**"A trick!" she shouted. "It was a trick."**

Annabeth smiles "Glad to see you appreciate my plans!"

"Oh can it wise girl!"

**They staggered after Luke, but it was too late. Everybody converged on the creek as Luke ran across into friendly territory. Our side exploded into cheers. The red banner shimmered and turned to silver. The boar and spear were replaced with a huge caduceus, the symbol of cabin eleven.**

"MINE!" Hermes Yelled happily.

"Yay, we win!" Joined in Apollo.

**Everybody on the blue team picked up Luke and started carrying him around on their shoulders. Chiron cantered out from the woods and blew the conch horn.**

**The game was over. We'd won.**

**I was about to join the celebration when Annabeth's voice, right next to me in the creek, said, "Not bad, hero."**

"Not bad? Understatement of the century!" Laughed Connor.

**I looked, but she wasn't there.**

"**Where the heck did you learn to fight like that?" she asked. The air shimmered, and she materialized, holding a Yankees baseball cap as if she'd just taken it off her head.**

**I felt myself getting angry. I wasn't even fazed by the fact that she'd just been invisible. "You set me up," I said. "You put me here because you knew Clarisse would come after me, while you sent Luke around the flank. You had it all figured out."**

**Annabeth shrugged. "I told you. Athena always, always has a plan."**

"You nearly got him PULVERIZED!" Poseidon complained.

"Sorry lord Poseidon, but we still won didn't we?"

**"A plan to get me pulverized."**

"Like father, like spawn!" Joked Athena, earning herself a dirty glare from the afore mentioned god.

**"I came as fast as I could. I was about to jump in, but ..." She shrugged. "You didn't need help."**

"Yeah I did get there quite early, but he was already doing so well!" the girl tried to defend herself.

**Then she noticed my wounded arm. "How did you do that?"**

**"Sword cut," I said. "What do you think?"**

**"No. It was a sword cut. Look at it."**

**The blood was gone. Where the huge cut had been, there was a long white scratch, and even that was fading. As I watched, it turned into a small scar, and disappeared.**

"Man, why does he have so many powers when we don't have any?"

"Um Thalia, you can control lightning!" Travis reminded her.

"But still… he has so much more!"

"I guess that's true!"

**"I-I don't get it," I said.**

**Annabeth was thinking hard. I could almost see the gears turning. She looked down at my feet, then at Clarisse's broken spear, and said, "Step out of the water, Percy."**

"**What-"**

"**Just do it."**

"Kiss, kiss,kiss,kiss! squeals Aphrodite.

Annabeth rolls her eyes. "_No_, Lady Aphrodite, why would I kiss him?"

"Because you loooove him!" Sang the love goddess!

"SHE DOES NOT!" yells Athena.

**I came out of the creek and immediately felt bone tired. My arms started to go numb again. My adrenaline rush left me. I almost fell over, but Annabeth steadied me.**

"Oooh, someone's getting rather touchy feely!" Aphrodite called.

"He nearly fell over!" Athena defended her daughter.

**"Oh, Styx," she cursed. "This is not good. I didn't want ...**

"You didn't want your boyfriend to be the son of your mother's enemy? Aphrodite guessed.

"No, I was waiting for someone special that would take me on a quest!" Annabeth corrected her, "But I wanted it to be someone I could get along with!"

**I assumed it would be Zeus..."**

"Why me?" Zeus complained, glaring at the girl.

"Don't get angry at my daughter, father, she is only saying something that she believes to be true. Of course she would think it would be you after the instance with Thalia!"

Zeus looked down guiltily.

**Before I could ask what she meant, I heard that canine growl again, but much closer than before. A howl ripped through the forest.**

Hades gulped getting ready to protect himself from his younger brother, worried about what would come next, but with a pretty good idea.

**The campers' cheering died instantly. Chiron shouted something in Ancient Greek, which I would realize, only later, I had understood perfectly: "Stand ready! My bow!"**

**Annabeth drew her sword.**

"Knife!" Annabeth corrected the book.

"I think the separation has driven her mad." Will told Connor, "The poor girl is talking to the book as though it is a real person!" This of course, set the boys off laughing again.

"Dude, how are you not our brother?"

"No idea!"

**There on the rocks just above us was a black hound the size of a rhino, with lava-red eyes and fangs like daggers.**

It took all of Poseidon's self control not to leap across the room and strangle his brother. "you sent a _hell hound _after him?"

"Oh, take it down an octave, you broke the oath, what did you expect?"

"Actually uncles." Dionysus broke in. "The camp has boundaries that stop this sort of thing!"

**It was looking straight at me.**

"HADES! If something happens to the boy, I will send you back to your kingdom the hard way!" The evil tone in the sea god's voice held enough venom to render his family speechless. There would have been a massacre in the room that very second if Annabeth had not stepped in.

"Lord Poseidon!" She shivered slightly as the glare was changed to her. "Lord Hades was not the one to summon the hell hound, it was someone in the camp!"

"Then who was it girl?"

"I cannot say, but I think the book will tell you later! Please my lord, be calm for now, I beg of you!"

The god returned to his seat, albeit unhappily, but he did calm slightly when faced with his sleeping son who was presented to him by his sister.

"Fine then daughter of Athena, read on!"

Before she did indeed begin reading again, Annabeth caught the grateful look shot at her by the lord of the dead and grinned.

**Nobody moved except Annabeth, who yelled, "Percy, run!"**

Poseidon nodded at the girl in thanks, then motioned for her to read on.

**She tried to step in front of me, but the hound was too fast. It leaped over her-an enormous shadow with teeth-and just as it hit me, as I stumbled backward and felt its razor-sharp claws ripping through my armor,**

All the Dami-gods in the room flinched, most of them remembered seeing this incident. Poseidon went back to glaring at his older brother. Hades fingered his helm of darkness, longing to put it on and escape.

**there was a cascade of thwacking sounds, like forty pieces of paper being ripped one after the other. From the hounds neck sprouted a cluster of arrows. The monster fell dead at my feet.**

Poseidon exhaled heavily, "Someone remind me to thank Chiron for this later!"

Hermes wrote that down on a note pad, "Okay uncle."

**By some miracle, I was still alive. I didn't want to look underneath the ruins of my shredded armor. My chest felt warm and wet, and I knew I was badly cut. Another second, and the monster would've turned me into a hundred pounds of delicatessen meat.**

**Chiron trotted up next to us, a bow in his hand, his face grim.**

**"**_**Di immortales**_**!" Annabeth said. "That's a hellhound from the Fields of Punishment. They don't ... They're not supposed to..."**

**"Someone summoned it," Chiron said. "Someone inside the camp."**

"See, I spoke the truth Lord Poseidon, the Lord Hades had no children in the cam at the time, he could not have been responsible for this!"

"Fine, I'm sorry for suspecting you brother!"

"You're forgiven… for now."

**Luke came over, the banner in his hand forgotten, his moment of glory gone.**

**Clarisse yelled, "It's all Percy's fault! Percy summoned it!"**

"Clarisse?! How the Hades does that make even the slightest bit of sense?" Piper exploded. "Why would Percy summon a monster to attack himself?"

"Sorry beauty queen, but I was a bit upset then, I wasn't really thinking!"

"You never do!"

Annabeth quickly read on, cutting off whatever retort the daughter of Ares had come up with.

**"Be quiet, child," Chiron told her.**

**We watched the body of the hellhound melt into shadow, soaking into the ground until it disappeared.**

**"You're wounded," Annabeth told me. "Quick, Percy, get in the water."**

**"I'm okay."**

"Stupid sea rat!" Annabeth chuckled, looking longingly at the baby in Poseidon's arms.

**"No, you're not," she said. "Chiron, watch this."**

**I was too tired to argue. I stepped back into the creek, the whole camp gathering around me.**

**Instantly, I felt better. I could feel the cuts on my chest closing up. Some of the campers gasped.**

"Oooooh, I bet I'm claiming him!" Poseidon smiled happily!

**"Look, I-I don't know why," I said, trying to apologize. "I'm sorry..."**

"Why does Percy apologize for everything?" Nico laughed. "The next thing you know, he will be apologizing to the Furies!"

**But they weren't watching my wounds heal. They were staring at something above my head.**

Poseidon begins to laugh, hugging the child tighter. "See, I really do love my son!"

**"Percy," Annabeth said, pointing. "Um..."**

**By the time I looked up, the sign was already fading, but I could still make out the hologram of green light, spinning and gleaming. A three-tipped spear: a trident.**

"The way you claim us is really funny!" Will mused, "It's like we get a light bulb above our heads!"

"You mean like in the cartoons when someone gets an idea?" Travis asked.

"But wouldn't that mean that only the Athena kids should be claimed like that?" Connor added.

**"Your father," Annabeth murmured. "This is really not good."**

"What's wrong with him being my son?" Poseidon complained, glaring at the girl.

"Ummm…. It means that you broke the oath!" Annabeth pointed out.

"Oh yeah…"

**"It is determined," Chiron announced.**

**All around me, campers started kneeling, even the Ares cabin, though they didn't look happy about it.**

"Too right, my kids were not born to bow to old seaweed's!" Ares mumbled.

**"My father?" I asked, completely bewildered.**

**"Poseidon," said Chiron. "Earthshaker, Stormbringer, Father of Horses. Hail, Perseus Jackson, Son of the Sea God."**

"That's it!" Annabeth concluded, handing the book over the empty seat to Thalia, who then passed it on to Jason.

The son of Jupiter was just about to stand and introduce himself when the room was filled with yet another bright light and everyone looked at it curiously.


	10. Reunion?

**A/N: first off, sorry about yesterday, I did update, but the chapter was pretty half hearted and I thought that it was an insult for my loyal readers so I took it down and hopefully improved it. Still, if you don't like it, I can always take it down and try again... anyway, enjoy ^_^**

* * *

The light in the throne room seemed to be stronger than usual, not to mention somewhat determined not to dissipate. Something that was not at all welcomed by the waiting audience, they wanted to see who it was, and, the gods at least, were not accustomed to being kept waiting for anything. Several minutes passed and still the luminosity did not fail.

A murmur began to pass around the watchers, speculation as to who the new arrival was, the only reason it was being restrained was the pained look on some of the faces and the desperation on one person's…

The young daughter of Athena was griping the arms of her chair so hard her hands were turning white, it looked as though it was taking all of her will power to remain seated in her throne, but her eyes shone with suppressed tears, something that was not missed by her mother, but thankfully, the goddess was wise enough to know that now was not the time to ask.

Finally, after several long minutes, the light died, not gradually, but all at once, almost as though someone had just flicked a switch and dispelled it. There was a short moment when the eyesight of those in the room adjusted to the sudden gloom, but when it passed, a huge gasp could be heard through out Olympus, accompanied by an angry scream…

In the centre of the throne room, looking as though they had just been interrupted in the middle of a rather… intimate, scene were 2 teenagers. One was a girl in roman style battle armour with black hair that fell around her olive face. The other was a boy. A boy with a mess of black hair, green eyes, and a look on his face that said that he didn't quite get what was going on here.

The scream of rage drew everyone's attention back to Annabeth, and Aphrodite grinned to herself in a self satisfied way, she knew it!

Seemingly unaware of the audience, the girl stood and stalked over to the pair and pulled them apart with a strength that was hidden by her slim frame, a strength that she then used to smash her right hand into the boy's face. Hard.

Still looking startled, he fell sprawling on the floor, clutching his nose as though he feared that the vicious attack had damaged it, but it looked like everything was good, but that still didn't stop Annabeth wheeling round to confront the girl who had recently drawn her gladius from the scabbard at her belt. However, before they could do much more than just stare at each other, sizing the opponent up for battle, a new voice pulled everyone up short.

"Reyna?"

The girl looked as though someone had just run an electrical current through her, as she span round to face the boy who sat under the eagle of Zeus.

"Jason!" Despite her training, the girl could not stop her surprise from breaking through the well practiced mask. "But you went missing!"

The gods all observed the exchange with varying degrees of shock, here was the sight of two worlds that should never have touched being drawn together in a way that they never believed possible. The demi-gods also had similar expressions to their parents, but for different reasons. The boy in front of them was definitely their missing friend, but what was he doing being so close to another girl that they had never met before, and why did Jason know her? In the end, there were only 3 expressions in the room that actually had an air of individuality, one was the god of the sea who was appraising his son with a look of smug pride, another was the clear as day death glare that Annabeth was shooting at her boyfriend, the last, and most unexpected, was the look of shrewd suspicion that took control of Piper as she glanced between Jason and the new arrival.

For quite a while, they all remained that way, but eventually, Zeus became bored of being ignorant to the events at hand and deemed it his place to speak up. However, before he could do much more than open his mouth, another piece of parchment fell to his feet, snapping everyone out of the spell, but also letting all of Hades lose.

"Percy!"

"Annabeth!"

"Percy!"

"Prissy!"

"Where were you?

"Why are you guys here?"

"Who's the chick?"

"If you were okay, why didn't you…"

"Prisssy, you are so dead when you…"

"We were scared that…"

After several attempts to restore order, the pandemonium finally fell silent when a huge earthquake shook the throne room of the gods.

"ENOUGH!"

All eyes fell on the lord of the sea after his sudden outburst, but the deity seemed content to wave it off and motion for his younger brother to continue with what he was about to say. Needless to say, Zeus was shocked, but he read anyway.

"_Phew, we finally managed to steal the…"_

A pink flash lit up the room and once again, the boy vanished with a smell of French perfume and roses. In the shocked silence, the king continued.

"_Never mind, she found out we stole him, damn that mad woman."_

All eyes fell upon the goddess of love who just shrugged and smiled in a way that clearly said _what you going to do? _After shooting her with his own strange look, Zeus carried on…

"_Um… sorry, guess we're going to try get him back before the next chapter ends, but she is putting up a bit of a fight, have fun with the new guest, it took us quite a while for us to find her!_

_Hermes and Apollo"_

With that, all eyes fell on the girl who bowed and replied stiffly, keeping her eyes locked upon the girl who was shooting daggers at her with her eyes.

" Reyna, daughter of Belona, praetor of the 12th legion and senator of new Rome!"

All the while, Athena's look of shock did not leave her countenance at the actions of her daughter, hitting the sea rat in the face she could deal with, but Jealousy? Something wasn't right here, what was she missing?

Piper remained in her seat shooting a death glare at Reyna who still remained in the centre of the room and had turned so that she had both of her enemies within her line of sight not trusting the daughter of Venus nor the child of Minerva. Aphrodite smiled to herself when she saw the triangle of girls eyeing each other suspiciously, yes, she guessed her work here was done, and this was going to be _very _interesting from now on.


	11. I Am Offered a Quest

The silence in the room hung heavily and Jason felt like he had been placed on display at the local freak show. He could tell by the way that Reyna looked at him that there was something going on between them, but then what of Piper?

In the end, to try and avoid all the stares/glares directed at him, the boy again took up the book, bowed to the stunned gods and said. "I'm Jason Grace, son of Jupiter and preator of the 12th legion."

For a short while after this, Zeus remained scarily quiet, but then he waved his son on and everyone returned to their seats. The girls were not exactly happy, but even they would not defy the king of the gods.

"**I Am Offered a Quest,"**

"I thought that quests were no longer being given?" Athena queried her daughter, dragging Annabeth's glare off of the new arrival. In response, the blond haired girl just shrugged.

"Percy's special."

"Caugh, needs, Caugh."

"Real mature Travis!"

**The next morning, Chiron moved me to cabin three.**

"Exactly where he should be!" Poseidon nodded his head in satisfaction.

**I didn't have to share with anybody. I had plenty of room for all my stuff: the Minotaur's horn, one set of spare clothes, and a toiletry bag. I got to sit at my own dinner table, pick all my own activities, call "lights out" whenever I felt like it, and not listen to anybody else.**

"Dude, I wish I was in your shoes!" Connor spoke to the small boy who had just poked his head out from behind his chair.

"Dude, who says "dude" anymore?" Travis looked at his brother in shock.

"You did!"

"Touché!"

**And I was absolutely miserable.**

"What?" Piper screeched. "I would _love _to have my own cabin!"

"Just try being alone all the time." Thalia answered darkly while her brother and cousin nodded their heads in agreement.

**Just when I'd started to feel accepted, to feel I had a home in cabin eleven and I might be a normal kid—or as normal as you can be when you're a half-blood—I'd been separated out as if I had some rare disease.**

"See, undeniable proof that my cabin is the best!" Hermes cheered, fist pumping the air.

**Nobody mentioned the hellhound, but I got the feeling they were all talking about it behind my back.**

The Stolls and Will quickly looked at the floor guiltily. They had been a large part of the gossip spreading.

**The attack had scared everybody. It sent two messages: one; that I was the son of the Sea God; and two, monsters would stop at nothing to kill me. They could even invade a camp that had always been considered safe.**

**The other campers steered clear of me as much as possible.**

"They all need more cereal!" Demeter announced heartily. Of course, the others ignored her.

**Cabin eleven was too nervous to have sword class with me after what I'd done to the Ares folks in the woods, so my lessons with Luke became one-on-one. He pushed me harder than ever, and wasn't afraid to bruise me up in the process.**

"That's my boy!" Hermes grinned evily. There was a sound of scraping on Olympus as everyone tried to get away from the crazed god.

**"You're going to need all the training you can get," he promised, as we were working with swords and flaming torches. "Now let's try that viper-beheading strike again. Fifty more repetitions."**

"_What? _The boy is a _beginner _and your son makes him do the mover _fifty _times?" Poseidon's glare was enough to make his nephew cower in his chair. Even Ares bit back his comment on how his children would do that no problem.

**Annabeth still taught me Greek in the mornings, but she seemed distracted. Every time I said something, she scowled at me, as if I'd just poked her between the eyes.**

"Good Girl!"

"Mom, I'm not a dog!"

**After lessons, she would walk away muttering to herself: "Quest ... Poseidon? ... Dirty rotten ... Got to make a plan …"**

"Me no dirty!" The small boy who was over by Connor suddenly ran over to Annabeth before stopping at her feet and shouting "up, up!"

While everyone (bar her mother) laughed, the daughter of wisdom leant down and picked up the screaming infant who clutched her close and giggled manically.

**Even Clarisse kept her distance, though her venomous looks made it clear she wanted to kill me for breaking her magic spear. I wished she would just yell or punch me or something. I'd rather get into fights every day than be ignored.**

"And to think, he never told me!" Clarisse scowled. "I would have been happy to oblige!"

"Wow." Leo snickered behind his hand to Rachel, "To think that Clarisse knew such a long word!"

All the demigods fell about laughing at the comment.

**I knew somebody at camp resented me, because one night I came into my cabin and found a mortal newspaper dropped inside the doorway, a copy of the**_**New York Daily News,**___**opened to the Metro page. The article took me almost an hour to read, because the angrier I got, the more the words floated around on the page.**

_**BOY AND MOTHER STILL MISSING AFTER**_ _**FREAK CAR ACCIDENT**_

_**BY EILEEN SMYTHE**_

"LUKE!" Annabeth hissed under her breath. Percy had never told her about this.

_**Sally Jackson and son Percy are still missing one week after their mysterious disappearance. The family's badly burned '78 Camaro was discovered last Saturday on a north Long Island road with the roof ripped off and the front axle broken.**_

"Good good! Not a scratch boy." Hermes chuckled.

_**The car had flipped and skidded for several hundred feet before exploding.**_

_**Mother and son had gone for a weekend vacation to Montauk, but left hastily, under mysterious circumstances. Small traces of blood were found in the car and near the scene of the wreck, but there were no other signs of the missing Jacksons. Residents in the rural area reported seeing nothing unusual around the time of the accident.**_

"stupid mortals!"

"HEY!"

"Sorry, let me re-phrase, stupid _normal _mortals!"

"So you're saying that I'm not normal?"

Travis thought for a moment. "Yes, that's exactly what I'm saying!"

"Good!"

_**Ms. Jackson's husband, Gabe Ugliano, claims that his stepson, Percy Jackson, is a troubled child who has been kicked out of numerous boarding schools and has expressed violent tendencies in the past.**_

"Maybe I should go and show him the meaning of violent!" Ares grinned.

_**Police would not say whether son Percy is a suspect in his mother's disappearance,**_

A chorus of "What"s and "That's Ridiculous!" filled the room.

_**but they have not ruled out foul play. Below are recent pictures of Sally Jackson and Percy. Police urge anyone with information to call the following toll-free crime-stoppers hotline.**_

**The phone number was circled in black marker.**

Annabeth hissed again and tightened her grip on the small boy who shifter in discomfort, noticing this, she let go with and apologetic smile, but her eyes still flashed wickedly.

**I wadded up the paper and threw it away, then flopped down in my bunk bed in the middle of my empty cabin.**

**"Lights out," I told myself miserably.**

"Poor boy, maybe I should give him a low to work?" Demeter mused. Hades rolled his eyes, but before another argument could break out, Jason read on.

**That night, I had my worst dream yet.**

"Oh no!" Whimpered Annabeth hanging her head.

**I was running along the beach in a storm. This time, there was a city behind me. Not New York. The sprawl was different: buildings spread farther apart, palm trees and low hills in the distance.**

**About a hundred yards down the surf, two men were fighting.**

Everyone turned to glare at the two men who looked away and whistled innocently.

**They looked like TV wrestlers, muscular, with beards and long hair. Both wore flowing Greek tunics, one trimmed in blue, the other in green.**

**They grappled with each other, wrestled, kicked and head-butted, and every time they connected, lightning flashed, the sky grew darker, and the wind rose.**

**I had to stop them. I didn't know why. But the harder I ran, the more the wind blew me back, until I was running in place, my heels digging uselessly in the sand.**

This time, it was a look of anxiety that did the rounds, this did not sound good.

**Over the roar of the storm, I could hear the blue-robed one yelling at the green-robed one,**_**Give it back! Give it back!**___**Like a kindergartner fighting over a toy.**

"An apt description if ever I heard one!" Hera sniffed, looking at her brothers disdainfully while many of the other Olympians nodded in agreement.

**The waves got bigger, crashing into the beach, spraying me with salt.**

**I yelled,**_**Stop it! Stop fighting!**_

"At least someone here sees sense!" The queen of the gods continued.

**The ground shook. Laughter came from somewhere under the earth, and a voice so deep and evil it turned my blood to ice**_**.**_

Now all eyes turned to the eldest brother who suddenly became interested in his buttons.

_**Come down, little hero,**___**the voice crooned.**_**Come down!**_

"If you lay one hand on my son _brother, _I swear…"

**The sand split beneath me, opening up a crevice straight down to the center of the earth. My feet slipped, and darkness swallowed me.**

With a large bang and a yelp, the lord of the dead was pinned to the floor with Poseidon's trident placed at his throat. It took several long minutes, and the effort of everyone else in the room (not to mention more than a few tears from Percy) but eventually they managed to pull the two apart and Jason resumed reading, albeit in a more guarded and careful voice.

**I woke up, sure I was falling.**

**I was still in bed in cabin three. My body told me it was morning, but it was dark outside, and thunder rolled across the hills. A storm was brewing. I hadn't dreamed that.**

**I heard a clopping sound at the door, a hoof knocking on the threshold.**

**"Come in?"**

**Grover trotted inside, looking worried. "Mr. D wants to see you."**

**"Why?"**

**"He wants to kill... I mean, I'd better let him tell you."**

"Yes, Grover, because that is sure to reassure him!" Thalia sighed rolling her eyes.

**Nervously, I got dressed and followed, sure that I was in huge trouble.**

**For days, I'd been half expecting a summons to the Big House. Now that I was declared a son of Poseidon, one of the Big Three gods who weren't supposed to have kids, I figured it was a crime for me just to be alive.**

"Yes, yes it is!" Hera again interrupted, earning herself quite a few glares for her thoughts.

**The other gods had probably been debating the best way to punish me for existing, and now Mr. D was ready to deliver their verdict.**

"Nope, that would have been my job!" Hermes sighed happily.

"Why do you sound as though you are enjoying this?"

"Well, simply put dear sister, if I am not there, then the boy is not being punished!" He said the words slowly, like he was explaining something to a little kid. Athena's face went bright red, irritated that she had missed something so obvious.

**Over Long Island Sound, the sky looked like ink soup coming to a boil. A hazy curtain of rain was coming in our direction. I asked Grover if we needed an umbrella.**

**"No," he said. "It never rains here unless we want it to."**

**I pointed at the storm. "What the heck is that, then?"**

**He glanced uneasily at the sky. "It'll pass around us. Bad weather always does."**

**I realized he was right. In the week I'd been here, it had never even been overcast. The few rain clouds I'd seen had skirted right around the edges of the valley.**

**But this storm ... this one was huge.**

Zeus grinned smugly at this. Demeter, for once forgetting her animosity towards her oldest brother, leaned across and whispered "Exactly like a kindergartener!" The two of them broke down into a fit of giggles causing everyone else look at them in shock.

**At the volleyball pit, the kids from Apollo's cabin were playing a morning game against the satyrs.**

"Did you win?" Apollo asked his son.

"What do you think?" Will's words were sarcastic but his grin was undeniably cocky.

"I love my kids!"

**Dionysus's twins were walking around in the strawberry fields, making the plants grow. Everybody was going about their normal business, but they looked tense. They kept their eyes on the storm.**

"Well duh!" Athena rolled her eyes, "This storm is not normal fish face!"

**Grover and I walked up to the front porch of the Big House. Dionysus sat at the pinochle table in his tiger-striped Hawaiian shirt with his Diet Coke, just as he had on my first day. Chiron sat across the table in his fake wheel chair. They were playing against invisible opponents-two sets of cards hovering in the air.**

**"Well, well," Mr. D said without looking up. "Our little celebrity."**

**I waited.**

**"Come closer," Mr. D said. "And don't expect me to bow to you, mortal, just because old Barnacle-Beard is your father."**

"That can be arranged!" Poseidon glared at his least favorite nephew who just cowered deeper into his throne

"Sorry Uncle."

"You better be!"

**A net of lightning flashed across the clouds. Thunder shook the windows of the house.**

**"Blah, blah, blah," Dionysus said.**

**Chiron feigned interest in his pinochle cards. Grover cowered by the railing, his hooves clopping back and forth.**

**"If I had my way," Dionysus said, "I would cause your molecules to erupt in flames. We'd sweep up the ashes and be done with a lot of trouble.**

Dionysus wished that he had the ability to turn invisible right about now.

**But Chiron seems to feel this would be against my mission at this cursed camp: to keep you little brats safe from harm."**

**"Spontaneous combustion**_**is**___**a form of harm, Mr. D," Chiron put in.**

"Is it? I think it's fun!" Everyone looked at Leo like he was a mad man, though, admittedly, he had been serious so they did have a good reason.

**"Nonsense," Dionysus said. "Boy wouldn't feel a thing. Nevertheless, I've agreed to restrain myself. I'm thinking of turning you into a dolphin instead, sending you back to your father."**

**"Mr. D—" Chiron warned.**

**"Oh, all right," Dionysus relented. "There's one more option. But it's deadly foolishness." Dionysus rose, and the invisible players' cards dropped to the table. "I'm off to Olympus for the emergency meeting. If the boy is still here when I get back, I'll turn him into an Atlantic bottlenose. Do you understand? And Perseus Jackson, if you're at all smart, you'll see that's a much more sensible choice than what Chiron feels you must do."**

Annabeth shifted uneasily in her seat, things were going to get rather uncomfortable if she remembered rightly.

**Dionysus picked up a playing card, twisted it, and it became a plastic rectangle. A credit card? No. A security pass.**

**He snapped his fingers.**

**The air seemed to fold and bend around him. He became a hologram, then a wind, then he was gone, leaving only the smell of fresh-pressed grapes lingering behind.**

**Chiron smiled at me, but he looked tired and strained. "Sit, Percy, please. And Grover."**

**We did.**

**Chiron laid his cards on the table, a winning hand he hadn't gotten to use.**

**"Tell me, Percy," he said. "What did you make of the hellhound?"**

**Just hearing the name made me shudder.**

**Chiron probably wanted me to say,**_**Heck, it was nothing. I eat hellhounds for breakfast.**_

"Well, technically that would be a lie, its more like your hell hound tries to eat you for breakfast, Mrs O'leary loves you!" Annabeth spoke to the boy in her arms, ignoring the incredulous looks she was getting from the gods.

**But I didn't feel like lying.**

"Smart kid." Athena conceded grudgingly.

**"It scared me," I said. "If you hadn't shot it, I'd be dead."**

**"You'll meet worse, Percy. Far worse, before you're done."**

"Wow, Can someone teach Chiron how _not _to scare kids when he is trying to reassure them?" Apollo whistled

**"Done ... with what?"**

**"Your quest, of course. Will you accept it?"**

"Um, what quest?" Poseidon asked, "You haven't told him what it is yet!"

**I glanced at Grover, who was crossing his fingers.**

**"Um, sir," I said, "you haven't told me what it is yet."**

"Great minds think alike!" Poseidon grinned happily.

"yes, and Idiots rarely differ!" Athena finished the saying, causing her uncle to pout and the rest of the room to crack up.

**Chiron grimaced. "Well, that's the hard part, the details."**

"Yes, and it wouldn't be hard for him at all, if you sent him off on a quest without telling him anything about it." Hephaestus rolled his eyes.

**Thunder rumbled across the valley. The storm clouds had now reached the edge of the beach. As far as I could see, the sky and the sea were boiling together.**

**"Poseidon and Zeus," I said. "They're fighting over something valuable ... something that was stolen, aren't they?"**

**Chiron and Grover exchanged looks.**

**Chiron sat forward in his wheelchair. "How did you know that?"**

**My face felt hot. I wished I hadn't opened my big mouth. "The weather since Christmas has been weird, like the sea and the sky are fighting. Then I talked to Annabeth, and she'd overheard something about a theft.**

"Yes, idiot, drag my daughter into this!"

**And ... I've also been having these dreams."**

**"I knew it," Grover said.**

**"Hush, satyr," Chiron ordered.**

**"But it is his quest!" Grover's eyes were bright with excitement. "It must be!"**

"I always wondered, is Grover S or M?" Nico mused.

"Excuse me?" Hades looked at his son questioningly.

"Sadist or Masochist." Everyone in the room looked at the boy as if he had gone mad, though he wasn't exactly happy that they were putting him in the same mental category as Leo.

**"Only the Oracle can determine."**

"Yes, I RULE!" Apollo cheered happily, throwing a flirty wink at Rachel.

**Chiron stroked his bristly beard. "Nevertheless, Percy, you are correct. Your father and Zeus are having their worst quarrel in centuries. They are fighting over something valuable that was stolen. To be precise: a lightning bolt."**

The tension in the room could have been cut with a knife, the two gods were now eyeing each other menacingly.

**I laughed nervously. "A**_**what**_**?"**

**"Do not take this lightly," Chiron warned. "I'm not talking about some tinfoil-covered zigzag you'd see in a second-grade play. I'm talking about a two-foot-long cylinder of high-grade celestial bronze, capped on both ends with god-level explosives."**

**"Oh."**

**"Zeus's master bolt," Chiron said, getting worked up now. "The symbol of his power, from which all other lightning bolts are patterned. The first weapon made by the Cyclopes for the war against the Titans, the bolt that sheered the top off Mount Etna and hurled Kronos from his throne; the master bolt, which packs enough power to make mortal hydrogen bombs look like firecrackers."**

**"And it's missing?"**

**"Stolen," Chiron said.**

**"By who?"**

**"By**_**whom**_**," Chiron corrected.**

"Is now really the time Chiron?" Hestia sighed.

**Once a teacher, always a teacher.**

**"By you."**

The silence in the room ended with a shout, but luckily, neither brother wanted to harm the goddess of the hearth who had just stepped between them.

**My mouth fell open.**

**"At least"—Chiron held up a hand—"that's what Zeus thinks. During the winter solstice, at the last council of the gods, Zeus and Poseidon had an argument.**

"Like always." Hera sighed.

**The usual nonsense: 'Mother Rhea always liked you best,' 'Air disasters are more spectacular than sea disasters,' etcetera.**

Catching the look in the eyes of the two mentioned gods, Jason hurried on.

**Afterward, Zeus realized his master bolt was missing, taken from the throne room under his very nose. He immediately blamed Poseidon.**

"Why does that not surprise me?" Poseidon sighed wearily.

"Because you are a demon that stole my master bolt!"

"Oh contraire little brother, I wish to point out two things. One, this has not happened yet, and two, why the Hades would I want your bolt?"

"Great, so even my own family use my name as a curse word!" The eldest grumbled wile Zeus just fumed in his chair.

**Now, a god cannot usurp another god's symbol of power directly—that is forbidden by the most ancient of divine laws. But Zeus believes your father convinced a human hero to take it."**

**"But I didn't—"**

**"Patience and listen, child," Chiron said. "Zeus has good reason to be suspicious. The forges of the Cyclopes are under the ocean, which gives Poseidon some influence over the makers of his brother's lightning. Zeus believes Poseidon has taken the master bolt, and is now secretly having the Cyclopes build an arsenal of illegal copies, which might be used to topple Zeus from his throne.**

"See there's your reason!" Zeus declared like a little kid again. Everyone else just ignored him.

**The only thing Zeus wasn't sure about was which hero Poseidon used to steal the bolt. Now Poseidon has openly claimed you as his son. You were in New York over the winter holidays. You could easily have snuck into Olympus. Zeus believes he has found his thief."**

"Apart from the fact that Percy knew nothing about this at the start of the week." Thalia commented glaring at her father.

**"But I've never even been to Olympus! Zeus is crazy!"**

All the demigods and half of the Olympians nodded their agreement to this, Leo walked up to the king, offered his hand and said "welcome to the club big guy!" Needles to say, Zeus was not amused.

**Chiron and Grover glanced nervously at the sky. The clouds didn't seem to be parting around us, as Grover had promised. They were rolling straight over our valley, sealing us in like a coffin lid.** **"Er, Percy ...?" Grover said. "We don't use the**_**c**_**-word to describe the Lord of the Sky."**

The throne room went silent.

**"Perhaps**_**paranoid,"**___**Chiron suggested. "Then again, Poseidon has tried to unseat Zeus before. I believe that was question thirty-eight on your final exam..." He looked at me as if he actually expected me to remember question thirty-eight.**

"Don't worry, you will, wont you Percy?" Annabeth looked intently at her baby boyfriend.

"y-yes?"

**How could anyone accuse me of stealing a god's weapon? I couldn't even steal a slice of pizza from Gabe's poker party without getting busted. Chiron was waiting for an answer.**

**"Something about a golden net?" I guessed. "Poseidon and Hera and a few other gods ... they, like, trapped Zeus and wouldn't let him out until he promised to be a better ruler, right?"**

Apollo hid in his chair, hoping desperately that his father would not remember his part in that particular scheme.

**"Correct," Chiron said. "And Zeus has never trusted Poseidon since.**

"And now you blame everything you don't like on me."Poseidon summed up.

**Of course, Poseidon denies stealing the master bolt.**

"Because I didn't obviously!"

**He took great offense at the accusation. The two have been arguing back and forth for months, threatening war. And now, you've come along—the proverbial last straw."**

**"But I'm just a kid!"**

"Wrong, you're _my_ kid!"

"Which means that you are doomed to die an incredibly painful death due to your own stupidity!" Athena declared drawing the glares of everyone in the room.

**"Percy," Grover cut in, "if you were Zeus, and you already thought your brother was plotting to overthrow you, then your brother suddenly admitted he had broken the sacred oath he took after World War II, that he's fathered a new mortal hero who might be used as a weapon against you... Wouldn't that put a twist in your toga?"**

**"But I didn't do anything. Poseidon—my dad—he didn't really have this master bolt stolen, did he?"**

"You are now my favorite child Perseus!" Poseidon told the boy who gurgled in delight.

**Chiron sighed. "Most thinking observers would agree that thievery is not Poseidon's style. But the Sea God is too proud to try convincing Zeus of that. Zeus has demanded that Poseidon return the bolt by the summer solstice. That's June twenty-first, ten days from now. Poseidon wants an apology for being called a thief by the same date. I hoped that diplomacy might prevail, that Hera or Demeter or Hestia would make the two brothers see sense. **

The three mentioned goddesses shared a long suffering look. Yes, that job always fell to one of _them._

**But your arrival has inflamed Zeus's temper. Now neither god will back down. Unless someone intervenes, unless the master bolt is found and returned to Zeus before the solstice, there will be war. And do you know what a full-fledged war would look like, Percy?"**

**"Bad?" I guessed.**

"Does your son have a mental disability uncle P?" Apollo asked nervously, trying to break the tension with a joke. Unfortunately, he failed. Annabeth sighed, it looked like she _had _remembered correctly.

**"Imagine the world in chaos. Nature at war with itself. Olympians forced to choose sides between Zeus and Poseidon. Destruction. Carnage. Millions dead. Western civilization turned into a battleground so big it will make the Trojan War look like a water-balloon fight."**

"I want to see that!" Ares sighed dreamily. Clarisse looked at her dad as if she was wanting to deny the two of them being related.

**"Bad," I repeated.**

"Yep, definitely a mental disability."

**"And you, Percy Jackson, would be the first to feel Zeus's wrath."**

"Funnily enough," Mused Travis, "Zeus is the least of Percy's problems at the minute." All the gods looked at the son of Hermes with a mixture of fear and confusion, what could be a worse problem than their temperamental ruler?

**It started to rain. Volleyball players stopped their game and stared in stunned silence at the sky.**

_**I**___**had brought this storm to Half-Blood Hill. Zeus was punishing the whole camp because of me. I was furious.**

"Typical Prissy, you get faced by one of the most powerful gods who wants to kill you, and you just get mad at him!"

**"So I have to find the stupid bolt," I said. "And return it to Zeus."**

**"What better peace offering," Chiron said, "than to have the son of Poseidon return Zeus's property?"**

"Yeah, I actually think that I would like that." Zeus contemplated.

**"If Poseidon doesn't have it, where is the thing?"**

**"I believe I know." Chiron's expression was grim.**

Hades groaned, he could see where this was going.

**"Part of a prophecy I had years ago ... well, some of the lines make sense to me, now. But before I can say more, you must officially take up the quest. You must seek the counsel of the Oracle."**

**"Why can't you tell me where the bolt is beforehand?"**

**"Because if I did, you would be too afraid to accept the challenge."**

"Yes, because he is really going to want to take the quest now!" Artemis sighed.

**I swallowed. "Good reason."**

**"You agree then?"**

**I looked at Grover, who nodded encouragingly.**

**Easy for him. I was the one Zeus wanted to kill.**

**"All right," I said. "It's better than being turned into a dolphin."**

"Or is it?" Apollo joked again, still no effect however.

**"Then it's time you consulted the Oracle," Chiron said. "Go upstairs, Percy Jackson, to the attic. When you come back down, assuming you're still sane, we will talk more."**

**Four flights up, the stairs ended under a green trap door.**

"Is he going to see you?" Apollo asked. Rachel just shook her head sadly, she hadn't known Percy at this point.

**I pulled the cord. The door swung down, and a wooden ladder clattered into place.**

**The warm air from above smelled like mildew and rotten wood and something else ... a smell I remembered from biology class. Reptiles. The smell of snakes.**

**I held my breath and climbed.**

**The attic was filled with Greek hero junk: armor stands covered in cobwebs; once-bright shields pitted with rust; old leather steamer trunks plastered with stickers saying ITHAKA, CIRCE'S ISLE, and LAND OF THE AMAZONS. One long table was stacked with glass jars filled with pickled**_**things**_—**severed hairy claws, huge yellow eyes, various other parts of monsters. A dusty mounted trophy on the wall looked like a giant snake's head, but with horns and a full set of shark's teeth. The plaque read, HYDRA HEAD #1, WOODSTOCK, N.Y., 1969.**

**By the window, sitting on a wooden tripod stool, was the most gruesome memento of all: a mummy.**

The sun God sighed but then cheered himself up by sneaking a peek at his new oracle, at least he wouldn't have to flirt with a mummy anymore!

**Not the wrapped-in-cloth kind, but a human female body shriveled to a husk. She wore a tie-dyed sundress, lots of beaded necklaces, and a headband over long black hair. The skin of her face was thin and leathery over her skull, and her eyes were glassy white slits, as if the real eyes had been replaced by marbles; she'd been dead a long, long time.**

Everyone looked worried as it appeared that Aphrodite was going to be sick again. Hephaestus leaned over and patted his wife on the back.

**Looking at her sent chills up my back. And that was before she sat up on her stool and opened her mouth. A green mist poured from the mummy's mouth, coiling over the floor in thick tendrils, hissing like twenty thousand snakes. I stumbled over myself trying to get to the trap door, but it slammed shut.**

**Inside my head, I heard a voice, slithering into one ear and coiling around my brain:**_**I am the spirit of Delphi, speaker of the prophecies of Phoebus Apollo, slayer of the mighty Python. Approach, seeker, and ask.**_

**I wanted to say,**_**No thanks, wrong door, just looking for the bathroom.**___**But I forced myself to take a deep breath.**

Everyone looked at Leo as piper asked "how are you two not brothers?"

**The mummy wasn't alive. She was some kind of gruesome receptacle for something else, the power that was now swirling around me in the green mist. But its presence didn't feel evil, like my demonic math teacher Mrs. Dodds or the Minotaur. It felt more like the Three Fates I'd seen knitting the yarn outside the highway fruit stand: ancient, powerful, and definitely**_**not**___**human. But not particularly interested in killing me, either.**.

**I got up the courage to ask, "What is my destiny?"**

"Way to be vague kid!" Dionysus grumbled.

**The mist swirled more thickly, collecting right in front of me and around the table with the pickled monster-part jars. Suddenly there were four men sitting around the table, playing cards. Their faces became clearer. It was Smelly Gabe and his buddies.**

Everyone cringed away from Poseidon as he again reacted to the name.

**My fists clenched, though I knew this poker party couldn't be real. It was an illusion, made out of mist.**

**Gabe turned toward me and spoke in the rasping voice of the Oracle:**_**You shall go west, and face the god who has turned.**_

**His buddy on the right looked up and said in the same voice:**_**You shall find what was stolen, and see it safely returned.**_

**The guy on the left threw in two poker chips, then said:**_**You shall be betrayed by one who calls you a friend.**_

**Finally, Eddie, our building superior, delivered the worst line of all:**_**And you shall fail to save what matters most, in the end.**_

**The figures began to dissolve. At first I was too stunned to say anything, but as the mist retreated, coiling into a huge green serpent and slithering back into the mouth of the mummy, I cried, "Wait! What do you mean? What friend? What will I fail to save?"**

"You're not going to get an answer!" Apollo sighed unhappily.

**The tail of the mist snake disappeared into the mummy's mouth. She reclined back against the wall. Her mouth closed tight, as if it hadn't been open in a hundred years. The attic was silent again, abandoned, nothing but a room full of mementos.**

**I got the feeling that I could stand here until I had cob webs, too, and I wouldn't learn anything else.**

**My audience with the Oracle was over.**

**"Well?" Chiron asked me.**

**I slumped into a chair at the pinochle table. "She said I would retrieve what was stolen."**

"hmph, I want to know what is more important than my master bolt!"

**Grover sat forward, chewing excitedly on the remains of a Diet Coke can. "That's great!"**

**"What did the Oracle say**_**exactly?"**___**Chiron pressed. "This is important."**

**My ears were still tingling from the reptilian voice. "She ... she said I would go west and face a god who had turned. I would retrieve what was stolen and see it safely returned."**

**"I knew it," Grover said.**

**Chiron didn't look satisfied. "Anything else?"**

**I didn't want to tell him.**

**What friend would betray me? I didn't have that many.**

**And the last line—I would fail to save what mattered most. What kind of Oracle would send me on a quest and tell me,**_**Oh, by the way, you'll fail**_**.**

"Mine!" Apollo called happily.

**How could I confess that?**

**"No," I said. "That's about it."**

"Chiron's going to know you're lying." Athena warned the book.

**He studied my face. "Very well, Percy. But know this: the Oracle's words often have double meanings. Don't dwell on them too much. The truth is not always clear until events come to pass."**

Apollo nodded.

**I got the feeling he knew I was holding back something bad, and he was trying to make me feel better.**

**"Okay," I said, anxious to change topics. "So where do I go? Who's this god in the west?"**

**"Ah, think, Percy," Chiron said. "If Zeus and Poseidon weaken each other in a war, who stands to gain?"**

"Here we go again!" Hades rolled his eyes

"But Dad didn't take it!" Nico protested vehemently, his father sent him a grateful look, but no one else paid him any mind.

**"Somebody else who wants to take over?" I guessed.**

**"Yes, quite. Someone who harbors a grudge, who has been unhappy with his lot since the world was divided eons ago, whose kingdom would grow powerful with the deaths of millions. Someone who hates his brothers for forcing him into an oath to have no more children, an oath that both of them have now broken."**

Everyone in the room started to look at Hades, but then turned away from his death glare.

**I thought about my dreams, the evil voice that had spoken from under the ground. "Hades."**

**Chiron nodded. "The Lord of the Dead is the only possibility."**

"Yes, because everything bad _always _has to be my fault doesn't it?" Hades grumbled. Zeus began glaring daggers at his brother.

**A scrap of aluminum dribbled out of Grover's mouth. "Whoa, wait. Wh-what?"**

**"A Fury came after Percy," Chiron reminded him. "She watched the young man until she was sure of his identity, then tried to kill him. Furies obey only one lord: Hades."**

**"Yes, but—but Hades hates**_**all**___**heroes," Grover protested. "Especially if he has found out Percy is a son of Poseidon..."**

**"A hellhound got into the forest," Chiron continued.**

**"Those can only be summoned from the Fields of Punishment, and it had to be summoned by someone within the camp. Hades must have a spy here. He must suspect Poseidon will try to use Percy to clear his name. Hades would very much like to kill this young half-blood before he can take on the quest."**

"yes, yes, because I sooo want that brat in my realm for all of eternity. Chiron, at least _think _about what you are saying!"

**"Great," I muttered. "That's two major gods who want to kill me."**

"Don't worry Percy, there'll be more!" Travis joked, causing a look of worry to flash across Poseidon's face.

**"But a quest to ..." Grover swallowed. "I mean, couldn't the master bolt be in some place like Maine? Maine's very nice this time of year."**

Zeus looked about to say something, but another shock from Thalia shut him up pretty quickly.

**"Hades sent a minion to steal the master bolt," Chiron insisted. "He hid it in the Underworld, knowing full well that Zeus would blame Poseidon.** **I don't pretend to under stand the Lord of the Dead's motives perfectly, or why he chose this time to start a war, but one thing is certain. Percy must go to the Underworld, find the master bolt, and reveal the truth."**

**A strange fire burned in my stomach. The weirdest thing was: it wasn't fear. It was anticipation. The desire for revenge. Hades had tried to kill me three times so far, with the Fury, the Minotaur, and the hellhound. It was his fault my mother had disappeared in a flash of light. Now he was trying to frame me and my dad for a theft we hadn't committed.**

**I was ready to take him on.**

"Why do I get the feeling that this is not going to end well?" The sea god groaned.

"Oh, I don't know, maybe because your son is wanting to challenge _me _to a fight!"

**Besides, if my mother was in the Underworld…**

**Whoa, boy, said the small part of my brain that was still sane. You're a kid. Hades is a god.**

"S the boy has some sense then!" Athena commented.

**Grover was trembling. He'd started eating pinochle cards like potato chips.**

**The poor guy needed to complete a quest with me so he could get his searcher's license, whatever that was, but how could I ask him to do this quest, especially when the Oracle said I was destined to fail? This was suicide.**

**"Look, if we know it's Hades," I told Chiron, "why can't we just tell the other gods? Zeus or Poseidon could go down to the Underworld and bust some heads."**

**"Suspecting and knowing are not the same," Chiron said. "Besides, even if the other gods suspect Hades—and I imagine Poseidon does—**

Poseidon smiled guiltily, "Sorry."

Hades grumbled but made no comment.

**they couldn't retrieve the bolt themselves. Gods cannot cross each other's territories except by invitation. That is another ancient rule. Heroes, on the other hand, have certain privileges. They can go anywhere, challenge anyone, as long as they're bold enough and strong enough to do it.** **No god can be held responsible for a hero's actions. Why do you think the gods always operate through humans?"**

**"You're saying I'm being used."**

"No!" Poseidon's shout could be heard all through Olympus.

**"I'm saying it's no accident Poseidon has claimed you now. It's a very risky gamble, but he's in a desperate situation. He needs you."**

"Do all of you feel like that?" Hephaestus asked the demigods, who all shifted uncomfortably in their chairs and did not answer.

**My dad needs me.**

**Emotions rolled around inside me like bits of glass in a kaleidoscope. I didn't know whether to feel resentful or grateful or happy or angry. Poseidon had ignored me for twelve years. Now suddenly he needed me.**

Poseidon glared at his younger brother again, but this time he was not alone, all the other Olympians who had children did the same.

**I looked at Chiron. "You've known I was Poseidon's son all along, haven't you?"**

**"I had my suspicions. As I said ... I've spoken to the Oracle, too."**

**I got the feeling there was a lot he wasn't telling me about his prophecy, but I decided I couldn't worry about that right now. After all, I was holding back information too.**

**"So let me get this straight," I said. "I'm supposed go to the Underworld and confront the Lord of the Dead."**

**"Check," Chiron said.**

**"Find the most powerful weapon in the universe."**

**"Check."**

**"And get it back to Olympus before the summer solstice, in ten days."**

"Well that's a sunny approach to things….. nothing? Really?" Apollo frowned at the apathetic response to his joke.

**"That's about right."**

**I looked at Grover, who gulped down the ace of hearts.**

**"Did I mention that Maine is very nice this time of year?" he asked weakly.**

**"You don't have to go," I told him. "I can't ask that of you."**

"Maybe the boy does not need all _that _much cereal!" Demeter cooed.

**"Oh..." He shifted his hooves. "No... it's just that satyrs and underground places... well..."**

**He took a deep breath, then stood, brushing the shredded cards and aluminum bits off his T-shirt. "You saved my life, Percy. If ... if you're serious about wanting me along, I won't let you down."**

**I felt so relieved I wanted to cry,** **though I didn't think that would be very heroic.**

All the demigods who knew Percy cracked up at this, since when did he ever look heroic?

**Grover was the only friend I'd ever had for longer than a few months. I wasn't sure what good a satyr could do against the forces of the dead, but I felt better knowing he'd be with me.**

**"All the way, G-man." I turned to Chiron. "So where do we go? The Oracle just said to go west."**

**"The entrance to the Underworld is always in the west. It moves from age to age, just like Olympus. Right now, of course, it's in America."**

**"Where?"**

**Chiron looked surprised. "I thought that would be obvious enough. The entrance to the Underworld is in Los Angeles."**

**"Oh," I said. "Naturally. So we just get on a plane—"**

"I take back my pervious comment, the boy is a half wit." Athena complained.

**"No!" Grover shrieked. "Percy, what are you thinking? Have you ever been on a plane in your life?"**

**I shook my head, feeling embarrassed. My mom had never taken me anywhere by plane. She'd always said we didn't have the money. Besides, her parents had died in a plane crash.**

**"Percy, think," Chiron said. "You are the son of the Sea God. Your father's bitterest rival is Zeus, Lord of the Sky. Your mother knew better than to trust you in an airplane. You would be in Zeus's domain. You would never come down again alive."**

**Overhead, lightning crackled. Thunder boomed.**

**"Okay," I said, determined not to look at the storm. "So, I'll travel overland."**

**"That's right," Chiron said. "Two companions may accompany you. Grover is one. The other has already volunteered, if you will accept her help."**

Athena turned to glare at her daughter who had suddenly become exceedingly fascinated with getting Percy's hair to lay flat.

**"Gee," I said, feigning surprise. "Who else would be stupid enough to volunteer for a quest like this?"**

**The air shimmered behind Chiron.**

**Annabeth became visible, stuffing her Yankees cap into her back pocket.**

Athena sighed, resigned t the fact that her daughter was going to be tagging along with the sea spawn _for now._

**"I've been waiting a long time for a quest, Seaweed Brain," she said. "Athena is no fan of Poseidon,**

The two mentioned Olympians glared at eachother.

**but if you're going to save the world, I'm the best person to keep you from messing up."**

**"If you do say so yourself," I said. "I suppose you have a plan, Wise Girl?"**

"Ummmmm…..no?" Annabeth answered, looking sheepishly at her mother who was now giving her a disbelieving look.

**Her cheeks colored. "Do you want my help or not?"**

**The truth was, I did. I needed all the help I could get.**

"Yes Annie, he neeeeeds you!" And that was how they lost the Love goddess to insanity just as they had lost Zeus. Leo's kingdom was rapidly growing.

**"A trio," I said. "That'll work."**

**"Excellent," Chiron said. "This afternoon, we can take you as far as the bus terminal in Manhattan. After that, you are on your own."**

**Lightning flashed. Rain poured down on the meadows that were never supposed to have violent weather.**

"Don't worry nephew, I will protect the strawberries!" Demeter declared as though she thought that Dionysus would cry if she did not.

**"No time to waste," Chiron said. "I think you should all get packing."**

"And that the end of the chapter." Jason declared, before passing the book on to the next reader.

The son of the dead stood and bowed to the gods. "I'm Nico de Angelo, son of Hades."


	12. I Ruin a Perfectly Good Bus

"**I Ruin a Perfectly Good Bus,"**

Nico began before he broke off and glared at Leo, "That sounds too much like something you would do!"

The son of Hephaestus stood and bowed "You honor me!"

"Sooo not meant to be a compliment!"

"I know!"

**It didn't take me long to pack. I decided to leave the Minotaur horn in my cabin, which left me only an extra change of clothes and a toothbrush to stuff in a backpack Grover had found for me.**

**The camp store loaned me one hundred dollars in mortal money and twenty golden drachmas. These coins were as big as Girl Scout cookies**

Reyna looked up, shocked at this, "You have actual Drachmas?"

"Impressed yet roman girl?" Leo winked at her, earning himself a look of disgust.

**and had images of various Greek gods stamped on one side and the Empire State Building on the other. The ancient mortal drachmas had been silver, Chiron told us, but Olympians never used less than pure gold**.

"I love the fact that everything is gold!" Apollo cheered happily while his twin just glared at him.

"You would!"

**Chiron said the coins might come in handy for non-mortal transactions—whatever that meant. He gave Annabeth and me each a canteen of nectar and a Ziploc bag full of ambrosia squares, to be used only in emergencies, if we were seriously hurt. It was god food, Chiron reminded us. It would cure us of almost any injury, but it was lethal to mortals. Too much of it would make a half-blood very, very feverish. An overdose would burn us up, literally.**

Rachel leaned forward in her chair. "Does that happen often?"

No one in the room felt like answering that.

**Annabeth was bringing her magic Yankees cap, which she told me had been a twelfth-birthday present from her mom.**

"Yes, I always give my children useful presents!" Athena stated matter of factly. Annabeth just growled at her mother, thinking of the _last _gift she had received.

**She carried a book on famous classical architecture, written in Ancient Greek, to read when she got bored, and a long bronze knife, hidden in her shirt sleeve. I was sure the knife would get us busted the first time we went through a metal detector**.

"Yes, because I wouldn't have thought of a counter measure for that already! Honestly uncle, the faith your son has in me is amazing!" Hephaestus grumbled into his beard.

**Grover wore his fake feet and his pants to pass as human. He wore a green rasta-style cap, because when it rained his curly hair flattened and you could just see the tips of his horns. His bright orange backpack was full of scrap metal and apples to snack on. In his pocket was a set of reed pipes his daddy goat had carved for him, even though he only knew two songs: Mozart's Piano Concerto no. 12 and Hilary Duff's "So Yesterday," both of which sounded pretty bad on reed pipes.**

"Will, _what _have you been _doing?" _

"Sorry Dad, but even we couldn't help Grover's musical handicap."

**We waved good-bye to the other campers, took one last look at the strawberry fields, the ocean, and the Big House, then hiked up Half-Blood Hill to the tall pine tree that used to be Thalia, daughter of Zeus.**

Thalia winced, they just _had _to bring that up didn't they?

**Chiron was waiting for us in his wheelchair. Next to him stood the surfer dude I'd seen when I was recovering in the sick room. According to Grover, the guy was the camp's head of security. He supposedly had eyes all over his body so he could never be surprised. Today, though, he was wearing a chauffeur's uniform, so I could only see extra peepers on his hands, face and neck.**

"He must have a really hard time getting to sleep at night, all those eyes must be really uncomfortable!" Leo mused, once again reaffirming his title as king of the crazies.

**"This is Argus," Chiron told me. "He will drive you into the city, and, er, well, keep an eye on things."**

"Bad pun Chiron, bad pun." Hermes shook his head sadly.

**I heard footsteps behind us.**

**Luke came running up the hill, carrying a pair of basketball shoes.**

**"Hey!" he panted. "Glad I caught you."**

"Yes, my son is the BEST!" Hermes yelled, completely oblivious to the muttering and death glares amongst the demigods, but he was the only one.

**Annabeth blushed, the way she always did when Luke was around.**

"Oooooh, the daughter of Athena has a crush on Hermes' son!" Aphrodite squealed again, but then she flinched as a bronze knife flew past her ear.

"Don't you _ever _say that again!" Was it just their imagination, or did the temperature drop several degrees from the look in the girl's eyes?

**"Just wanted to say good luck," Luke told me. "And I thought ... um, maybe you could use these."**

**He handed me the sneakers, which looked pretty normal. They even smelled kind of normal.**

"Don't mock my shoes!"

Annabeth leaned over to her friend and whispered, "Yeah, because those shoes _didn't _try to kill us and take the master bolt into tartarus!"

**Luke said,** **"**_**Maia**_**!"**

"You magic word for your shoes is MAIA?" Apollo choked out over his laughter.

The God of thieves went bright red, but he could not deny it, not now anyway.

"Momma's boy!" Ares snickered.

**White bird's wings sprouted out of the heels, startling me so much, I dropped them. The shoes flapped around on the ground until the wings folded up and disappeared.**

**"Awesome!" Grover said.**

"Could I have some of those shoes pweeeease?"

"Only if you let me drive the sun!"

"Deal!"

Everyone in the room flinched, this was not going to end well.

**Luke smiled. "Those served me well when I was on my quest. Gift from Dad. Of course, I don't use them much these days..." His expression turned sad.**

**I didn't know what to say. It was cool enough that Luke had come to say good-bye. I'd been afraid he might resent me for getting so much attention the last few days.**

**But here he was giving me a magic gift... It made me blush almost as much as Annabeth.**

"PERCY!" Annabeth yelled, looking as though steam was about to come gushing from her ears. The small boy stumbled off of her lap and behind Nico's leg, pointing at the daughter of Athena.

"Scawwy!"

"Oh, we all know that Perce!"

"HEY!"

**"Hey, man," I said. "Thanks."**

**"Listen, Percy ..." Luke looked uncomfortable. "A lot of hopes are riding on you. So just ... kill some monsters for me, okay?"**

**We shook hands. Luke patted Grover's head between his horns, then gave a good-bye hug to Annabeth, who looked like she might pass out.**

Nico hurriedly read on, trying to avoid another bout of shouting aimed at Percy, and him by default as his cousin was now sat on his lap.

**After Luke was gone, I told her, "You're hyperventilating."**

Wisely, no one dared comment at this.

**"Am not."**

**"You let him capture the flag instead of you, didn't you?"**

**"Oh... why do I want to go anywhere with you, Percy?"**

"A _very _good question daughter!" Athena glared at Daughter, someone finally managing to make Annabeth calm down slightly.

"That's none of your business _mother."_

**She stomped down the other side of the hill, where a white SUV waited on the shoulder of the road. Argus followed, jingling his car keys.**

**I picked up the flying shoes and had a sudden bad feeling. I looked at Chiron. "I won't be able to use these, will I?"**

"yes son, stay out of the sky!"

**He shook his head. "Luke meant well, Percy. But taking to the air ... that would not be wise for you."**

"Aww, come on boy, just a little trip into the air!"

"Zeus, are you _wanting _to kill my son even _now?"_

"Yes, yes I am."

**I nodded, disappointed, but then I got an idea. "Hey, Grover. You want a magic item?"**

"Awww, that's so sweet, the boy must have eaten enough cereal!"

Before he continued reading, Nico turned to Leo, "Looks like you have a new subject for your kingdom!"

**His eyes lit up. "Me?"**

**Pretty soon we'd laced the sneakers over his fake feet, and the world's first flying goat boy was ready for launch.**

**"**_**Maia**_**!"**

Hermes sighed happily, his shoes were being put to good use, far better than being left on his son's shelf.

**he shouted.**

**He got off the ground okay, but then fell over sideways so his backpack dragged through the grass. The winged shoes kept bucking up and down like tiny broncos.**

Everyone laughed at this statement.

**"Practice," Chiron called after him. "You just need practice!"**

**"Aaaaa!" Grover went flying sideways down the hill like a possessed lawn mower, heading toward the van.**

"What, you mean his mouth was open?" Thalia joked, setting everyone off again.

**Before I could follow, Chiron caught my arm. "I should have trained you better, Percy," he said. "If only I had more time. Hercules, Jason—they all got more training."**

"Wow, I'm mentioned!" Jason joked, earning a slap off of his sister for his efforts.

**"That's okay. I just wish—"**

**I stopped myself because I was about to sound like a brat. I was wishing my dad had given me a cool magic item to help on the quest, something as good as Luke's flying shoes, or Annabeth's invisible cap.**

**"What am I thinking?" Chiron cried. "I can't let you get away without this."**

**He pulled a pen from his coat pocket and handed it to me. It was an ordinary disposable ballpoint, black ink, removable cap. Probably cost thirty cents.**

Poseidon grinned, anticipating his sons reaction to the secret of the sword that was about to be revealed.

Thalia whistled "If only he knew how many times that thirty cents worth of pen has saved our lives."

**"Gee," I said. "Thanks."**

**"Percy, that's a gift from your father. I've kept it for years, not knowing you were who I was waiting for. But the prophecy is clear to me now. You are the one."**

**I remembered the field trip to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, when I'd vaporized Mrs. Dodds. Chiron had thrown me a pen that turned into a sword. Could this be...?**

"Yes son, yes it is."

**I took off the cap, and the pen grew longer and heavier in my hand. In half a second, I held a shimmering bronze sword with a double-edged blade, a leather-wrapped grip, and a flat hilt riveted with gold studs. It was the first weapon that actually felt balanced in my hand.**

**"The sword has a long and tragic history that we need not go into," Chiron told me.**

"Yes. " Artemis flinched, thinking about her old Lieutenant, "Very tragic."

**"Its name is Anaklusmos."**

**"'Riptide,'" I translated, surprised the Ancient Greek came so easily.**

**"Use it only for emergencies," Chiron said, "and only against monsters. No hero should harm mortals unless absolutely necessary, of course, but this sword wouldn't harm them in any case."**

**I looked at the wickedly sharp blade. "What do you mean it wouldn't harm mortals?" How could it not?**

**"The sword is celestial bronze. Forged by the Cyclopes, tempered in the heart of Mount Etna, cooled in the River Lethe. It's deadly to monsters, to any creature from the Underworld, provided they don't kill you first. But the blade will pass through mortals like an illusion. They simply are not important enough for the blade to kill. And I should warn you: as a demigod, you can be killed by either celestial or normal weapons. You are**_**twice**_**as vulnerable."**

"Wow, way to be perky Chiron." Hermes rolled his eyes.

Athena shrugged, "well, it is true!"

**"Good to know."**

**"Now recap the pen."**

**I touched the pen cap to the sword tip and instantly Riptide shrank to a ballpoint pen again. I tucked it in my pocket, a little nervous, because I was famous for losing pens at school.**

**"You can't," Chiron said.**

**"Can't what?"**

**"Lose the pen," he said. "It is enchanted. It will always reappear in your pocket. Try it."**

**I was wary, but I threw the pen as far as I could down the hill and watched it disappear in the grass.**

**"It may take a few moments," Chiron told me. "Now check your pocket."**

**Sure enough, the pen was there.**

"Um, Jason, that is soooo much cooler than your coin!" Piper looked amazed.

"Yes, where do I get one of those?" Leo had a strange look in his eye.

"NO ONE LET HIM GET ONE!"

"Aw come on Pipes."

"No, you are dangerous enough as it is!"

**"Okay, that's**_**extremely **_**cool," I admitted. "But what if a mortal sees me pulling out a sword?"**

**Chiron smiled. "Mist is a powerful thing, Percy."**

**"Mist?"**

"Holy Jupiter, he still doesn't get it?" Reyna asked, she had never known that her co-preator had been so dense.

Annabeth just shrugged. "Percy is Percy."

**"Yes. Read**_**The Iliad. **_**It's full of references to the stuff. Whenever divine or monstrous elements mix with the mortal world, they generate Mist, which obscures the vision of humans.**

"Yes Chiron, encourage a kid who is _dyslexic _to read a 400 page book!" Poseidon seethed.

**You will see things just as they are, being a half-blood, but humans will interpret things quite differently. Remarkable, really, the lengths to which humans will go to fit things into their version of reality."**

**I put Riptide back in my pocket.**

**For the first time, the quest felt real. I was actually leaving Half-Blood Hill. I was heading west with no adult supervision, no backup plan, not even a cell phone. (Chiron said cell phones were traceable by monsters; if we used one, it would be worse than sending up a flare.) I had no weapon stronger than a sword to fight off monsters and reach the Land of the Dead.**

"You've got to love Percy's sunny personality." Nico laughed.

"Says you Mr I-summon-the-dead-using-happy-meals?" Thalia poked her cousin.

"….Good point."

**"Chiron ..." I said. "When you say the gods are immortal... I mean, there was a time**_**before **_**them, right?"**

"Oh, great, now the boy wants a history lesson." Athena sighed.

**"Four ages before them, actually. The Time of the Titans was the Fourth Age, sometimes called the Golden Age,**

All the older Olympians scoffed at that.

**which is definitely a misnomer. This, the time of Western civilization and the rule of Zeus, is the Fifth Age."**

**"So what was it like ... before the gods?"**

"Not good," Zeus winced.

"You're telling us." Demeter shuddered "You're the one who didn't have to grow up inside of father's stomach!"

**Chiron pursed his lips. "Even I am not old enough to remember that, child, but I know it was a time of darkness and savagery for mortals. Kronos, the lord of the Titans, called his reign the Golden Age because men lived innocent and free of all knowledge. But that was mere propaganda. The Titan king cared nothing for your kind except as appetizers or a source of cheap entertainment. It was only in the early reign of Lord Zeus, when Prometheus the good Titan brought fire to mankind, that your species began to progress, and even then Prometheus was branded a radical thinker. Zeus punished him severely, as you may recall. Of course, eventually the gods warmed to humans, and Western civilization was born."**

"Yes, yes, that's how mummy met daddy and all that, now can we get rid of the brat Chiron?" The wine god quipped.

**"But the gods can't die now, right? I mean, as long as Western civilization is alive, they're alive. So ... even if I failed, nothing could happen so bad it would mess up**_**everything, **_**right?"**

At this, all of the older demigods snickered, if only he knew.

**Chiron gave me a melancholy smile. "No one knows how long the Age of the West will last, Percy. The gods are immortal, yes. But then, so were the Titans.**_**They **_**still exist, locked away in their various prisons, forced to endure endless pain and punishment,**

Annabeth flinched at this, almost choking the teddy in her hands and causing her mother to shoot her a worried look.

**reduced in power, but still very much alive. May the Fates forbid that the gods should ever suffer such a doom, or that we should ever return to the darkness and chaos of the past. All we can do, child, is follow our destiny."**

**"Our destiny ... assuming we know what that is."**

**"Relax," Chiron told me. "Keep a clear head. And remember, you may be about to prevent the biggest war in human history."**

"Yes, I'm sure that's going to help him relax Chiron!" Poseidon growled at the book.

**"Relax," I said. "I'm very relaxed."**

"He wasn't!" Annabeth stated, a dreamy look in her eyes.

**When I got to the bottom of the hill, I looked back. Under the pine tree that used to be Thalia, daughter of Zeus, Chiron was now standing in full horse-man form, holding his bow high in salute. Just your typical summer-camp send-off by your typical centaur.**

"yes, same old, same old." Rachel grinned.

**Argus drove us out of the countryside and into western Long Island. It felt weird to be on a highway again, Annabeth and Grover sitting next to me as if we were normal carpoolers. After two weeks at Half-Blood Hill, the real world seemed like a fantasy. I found myself staring at every McDonald's,**

All the older demigods looked at Nico and cracked up laughing at this.

**every kid in the back of his parents' car, every billboard and shopping mall.**

**"So far so good," I told Annabeth. "Ten miles and not a single monster."**

"And there he goes jinxing everything!" Hermes sighed.

**She gave me an irritated look. "It's bad luck to talk that way, Seaweed Brain."**

**"Remind me again—why do you hate me so much?"**

**"I don't hate you."**

"Nope, she luuuuves y… ow Annie, no need to get violent!" All the gods turned in time to see Connor recoil from Annabeth's fist.

**"Could've fooled me."**

**She folded her cap of invisibility. "Look ... we're just not supposed to get along, okay? Our parents are rivals."**

**"Why?"**

**She sighed. "How many reasons do you want? One time my mom caught Poseidon with his girlfriend in Athena's temple, which is**_**hugely**___**disrespectful.**

"How many times do I have to tell everyone that she was NOT my girlfriend?" Poseidon whined like a small kid again.

**Another time, Athena and Poseidon competed to be the patron god for the city of Athens. Your dad created some stupid saltwater spring for his gift.**

"HEY!"

"Well, think about it Lord Poseidon, what could people do with a salt water spring?" Annabeth defended herself.

"er…"

"My point exactly!"

**My mom created the olive tree. The people saw that her gift was better, so they named the city after her."**

**"They must really like olives."**

"Yes they do actually!" Athena sniffed, looking insulted.

**"Oh, forget it."**

**"Now, if she'd invented pizza—**_**that **_**I could understand."**

"Now that, would have been cool!" Apollo cheered.

"Not as cool as me inventing the internet!"

"Shut up Hermes!"

**"I said, forget it!"**

**In the front seat, Argus smiled. He didn't say anything, but one blue eye on the back of his neck winked at me.**

**Traffic slowed us down in Queens. By the time we got into Manhattan it was sunset and starting to rain.**

**Argus dropped us at the Greyhound Station on the Upper East Side, not far from my mom and Gabe's apartment. Taped to a mailbox was a soggy flyer with my picture on it: HAVE YOU SEEN THIS BOY?**

**I ripped it down before Annabeth and Grover could notice.**

"Um, you were a bit slow there Percy!" Annabeth told the small boy who was trying to steal the book off of Nico.

**Argus unloaded our bags, made sure we got our bus tickets, then drove away, the eye on the back of his hand opening to watch us as he pulled out of the parking lot.**

**I thought about how close I was to my old apartment. On a normal day, my mom would be home from the candy store by now. Smelly Gabe was probably up there right now, playing poker, not even missing her.**

"Wretched MALE!" Artemis spat.

**Grover shouldered his backpack. He gazed down the street in the direction I was looking. "You want to know why she married him, Percy?"**

**I stared at him. "Were you reading my mind or something?"**

**"Just your emotions." He shrugged.** **"Guess I forgot to tell you satyrs can do that.**

**You were thinking about your mom and your stepdad, right?"**

**I nodded, wondering what else Grover might've forgotten to tell me.**

**"Your mom married Gabe for**_**you,"**_**Grover told me. "You call him 'Smelly,' but you've got no idea. The guy has this aura…. Yuck. I can smell him from here. I can smell traces of him on you, and you haven't been near him for a week."**

**"Thanks," I said. "Where's the nearest shower?"**

The council chuckled at this, only Percy would say that in this situation.

**"You should be grateful, Percy. Your stepfather smells so repulsively human he could mask the presence of any demigod. As soon as I took a whiff inside his Camaro, I knew: Gabe has been covering your scent for years. If you hadn't lived with him every summer, you probably would've been found by monsters a long time ago.**

**Your mom stayed with him to protect you. She was a smart lady. She must've loved you a lot to put up with that guy—if that makes you feel any better."**

**It didn't, but I forced myself not to show it.**

**I'll see her again, I thought. She isn't gone.**

"Stop it son, that plan is _never _going to work!"

**I wondered if Grover could still read my emotions, mixed up as they were. I was glad he and Annabeth were with me, but I felt guilty that I hadn't been straight with them. I hadn't told them the real reason I'd said yes to this crazy quest.**

**The truth was, I didn't care about retrieving Zeus's lightning bolt,**

"WHAT? My lightning bolt is the most important thing!" Zeus frowned.

"Um dad, you better hope it's not!"

"And why is that Apollo?"

"Remember the prophecy, _you will fail to save what matters most in the end?_"

"Oh…"

**or saving the world, or even helping my father out of trouble.**

"Thanks son!" Poseidon sighed sadly, distracting baby Percy from his tug of war over the book.

"Sowwy Daddy!"

**The more I thought about it, I resented Poseidon for never visiting me, never helping my mom, never even sending a lousy child-support check.**

Again, all the Olympians with kids glared at Zeus, this was all HIS fault.

**He'd only claimed me because he needed a job done.**

"_NOT _ true Percy, NOT true!"

**All I cared about was my mom. Hades had taken her unfairly and Hades was going to give her back.**

_**You will be betrayed by one who calls you a friend, **_**the Oracle whispered in my mind.**_**You will fail to save what matters most in the end.**_

_**Shut up, **_**I told it.**

"Thanks Percy!" Rachel grinned, "I love getting told to shut up."

**The rain kept coming down.**

**We got restless waiting for the bus and decided to play some Hacky Sack with one of Grover's apples. Annabeth was unbelievable.**

"Yes, yes I am!" Annabeth smiled proudly.

"Modest too!"

"Shut it Solace."

**She could bounce the apple off her knee, her elbow, her shoulder, whatever. I wasn't too bad myself.**

"Aww such a cute couple, neither of you have any humility!"

"I would tell you to shut up again Will, but I'm surprised that you know such a long word!"

"Thanks Annie, really appreciate it!"

**The game ended when I tossed the apple toward Grover and it got too close to his mouth. In one mega goat bite, our Hacky Sack disappeared—core, stem, and all.**

The Laughter of the gods echoed throughout Olympus after this comment.

**Grover blushed. He tried to apologize, but Annabeth and I were too busy cracking up.**

**Finally the bus came. As we stood in line to board, Grover started looking around, sniffing the air like he smelled his favorite school cafeteria delicacy—enchiladas.**

**"What is it?" I asked.**

**"I don't know," he said tensely. "Maybe it's nothing."**

**But I could tell it wasn't nothing. I started looking over my shoulder, too.**

**I was relieved when we finally got on board and found seats together in the back of the bus. We stowed our back packs. Annabeth kept slapping her Yankees cap nervously against her thigh.**

**As the last passengers got on, Annabeth clamped her hand onto my knee.**

**"Percy."**

**An old lady had just boarded the bus. She wore a crumpled velvet dress, lace gloves, and a shapeless orange-knit hat that shadowed her face, and she carried a big paisley purse. When she tilted her head up, her black eyes glittered, and my heart skipped a beat.**

Hades tried to hide in his throne again while his brother hissed threateningly.

**It was Mrs. Dodds. Older, more withered, but definitely the same evil face.**

**I scrunched down in my seat.**

**Behind her came two more old ladies: one in a green hat, one in a purple hat. Otherwise they looked exactly like Mrs. Dodds—same gnarled hands, paisley handbags, wrinkled velvet dresses. Triplet demon grandmothers.**

"You now send all THREE of them after my son?" Poseidon screeched.

"Not to mention my Daughter!"

Hades flinched away from the two deities that now looked as though they wanted to kill him.

**They sat in the front row, right behind the driver. The two on the aisle crossed their legs over the walkway, making an X. It was casual enough, but it sent a clear message: nobody leaves.**

**The bus pulled out of the station, and we headed through the slick streets of Manhattan. "She didn't stay dead long," I said, trying to keep my voice from quivering. "I thought you said they could be dispelled for a lifetime."**

**"I said if you're**_**lucky**_**," Annabeth said. "You're obviously not."**

"Well duh!" Katie muttered, "It's Percy, he never has good luck."

**"All three of them," Grover whimpered.**_**"Di immortales!"**_

**"It's okay," Annabeth said, obviously thinking hard. "The Furies. The three worst monsters from the Underworld. No problem. No problem. We'll just slip out the windows."**

**"They don't open," Grover moaned.**

**"A back exit?" she suggested.**

**There wasn't one. Even if there had been, it wouldn't have helped. By that time, we were on Ninth Avenue, heading for the Lincoln Tunnel.**

"Crap"

**"They won't attack us with witnesses around," I said. "Will they?"**

**"Mortals don't have good eyes," Annabeth reminded me. "Their brains can only process what they see through the Mist."**

**"They'll see three old ladies killing us, won't they?"**

**She thought about it. "Hard to say. But we can't count on mortals for help. Maybe an emergency exit in the roof ... ?"**

**We hit the Lincoln Tunnel, and the bus went dark except for the running lights down the aisle. It was eerily quiet without the sound of the rain.**

**Mrs. Dodds got up. In a flat voice, as if she'd rehearsed it, she announced to the whole bus: "I need to use the rest-room."**

**"So do I," said the second sister.**

**"So do I," said the third sister.**

**They all started coming down the aisle.**

"Yes, because that isn't suspicious!" Hephaestus rolled his eyes.

"You never know, perhaps they need help?"

"Apollo, that is _disgusting!"_

"Sorry lil sis."

**"I've got it," Annabeth said. "Percy, take my hat."**

**"What?"**

**"You're the one they want. Turn invisible and go up the aisle. Let them pass you. Maybe you can get to the front and get away."**

**"But you guys—"**

**"There's an outside chance they might not notice us," Annabeth said. "You're a son of one of the Big Three. Your smell might be overpowering."**

**"I can't just leave you."**

"And again, Percy's noble side!" Katie sighed.

**"Don't worry about us," Grover said. "Go!"**

**My hands trembled. I felt like a coward, but I took the Yankees cap and put it on.**

"Coward" Ares agreed before he took yet another shower in the black sea.

**When I looked down, my body wasn't there anymore.**

**I started creeping up the aisle. I managed to get up ten rows, then duck into an empty seat just as the Furies walked past.**

**Mrs. Dodds stopped, sniffing, and looked straight at me. My heart was pounding.**

**Apparently she didn't see anything. She and her sisters kept going.**

**I was free. I made it to the front of the bus. We were almost through the Lincoln Tunnel now. I was about to press the emergency stop button when I heard hideous wailing from the back row.**

**The old ladies were not old ladies anymore. Their faces were still the same—I guess those couldn't get any uglier—**

"As I said, babysitters from hell!"

"Don't you mean from Hades?"

"Shut up Travis."

**but their bodies had shriveled into leathery brown hag bodies with bat's wings and hands and feet like gargoyle claws. Their handbags had turned into fiery whips.**

**The Furies surrounded Grover and Annabeth, lashing their whips, hissing: "Where is it? Where?"**

**The other people on the bus were screaming, cowering in their seats. They saw**_**something, **_**all right.**

"Well yes," Hera sniffed, "even mortals are not _that _blind!"

**"He's not here!" Annabeth yelled. "He's gone!"**

**The Furies raised their whips.**

**Annabeth drew her bronze knife. Grover grabbed a tin can from his snack bag and prepared to throw it.**

"Yeah, like that will work."

"Shut it La Rue!"

**What I did next was so impulsive and dangerous I should've been named ADHD poster child of the year.**

"HEY, no fair, that should be my spot!" Leo whined.

"No, it should be ours!" The Stolls chimed in. Trying to bring some sanity back, Nico read on.

**The bus driver was distracted, trying to see what was going on in his rearview mirror.**

**Still invisible, I grabbed the wheel from him and jerked it to the left. Everybody howled as they were thrown to the right, and I heard what I hoped was the sound of three Furies smashing against the windows.**

**"Hey!" the driver yelled. "Hey—whoa!"**

**We wrestled for the wheel. The bus slammed against the side of the tunnel, grinding metal, throwing sparks a mile behind us.**

"If he kills me daughter…"

"Mom, I'm right here!"

"but still…"

"No mom, stop sounding like a spoiled brat!" At this, the goddess of wisdom went bright red while family laughed all around her.

**We careened out of the Lincoln Tunnel and back into the rainstorm, people and monsters tossed around the bus, cars plowed aside like bowling pins.**

**Somehow the driver found an exit. We shot off the highway, through half a dozen traffic lights, and ended up barreling down one of those New Jersey rural roads where you can't believe there's so much nothing right across the river from New York. There were woods to our left, the Hudson River to our right, and the driver seemed to be veering toward the river.**

**Another great idea: I hit the emergency brake.**

**The bus wailed, spun a full circle on the wet asphalt, and crashed into the trees. The emergency lights came on. The door flew open. The bus driver was the first one out, the passengers yelling as they stampeded after him. I stepped into the driver's seat and let them pass.**

**The Furies regained their balance. They lashed their whips at Annabeth while she waved her knife and yelled in Ancient Greek, telling them to back off. Grover threw tin cans.**

"Tin cans, the ultimate health food!" Leo cheered.

**I looked at the open doorway. I was free to go, but I couldn't leave my friends. I took off the invisible cap. "Hey!"**

**The Furies turned, baring their yellow fangs at me, and the exit suddenly seemed like an excellent idea. Mrs. Dodds stalked up the aisle, just as she used to do in class, about to deliver my F- math test. Every time she flicked her whip, red flames danced along the barbed leather.**

**Her two ugly sisters hopped on top of the seats on either side of her and crawled toward me like huge nasty lizards.**

**"Perseus Jackson," Mrs. Dodds said, in an accent that was definitely from somewhere farther south than Georgia. "You have offended the gods. You shall die."**

"Hey, he hasn't done anything yet, wait until he ticks you all off befre you do that!" Thalia joked.

**"I liked you better as a math teacher," I told her.**

"Oh , such a _great _insult Prissy!"

**She growled.**

**Annabeth and Grover moved up behind the Furies cautiously, looking for an opening.**

**I took the ballpoint pen out of my pocket and uncapped it. Riptide elongated into a shimmering double-edged sword.**

**The Furies hesitated.**

**Mrs. Dodds had felt Riptide's blade before. She obviously didn't like seeing it again.**

**"Submit now," she hissed. "And you will not suffer eternal torment."**

**"Nice try," I told her.**

**"Percy, look out!" Annabeth cried.**

**Mrs. Dodds lashed her whip around my sword hand while the Furies on the either side lunged at me.**

"NO NO NO NO" Poseidon yelled, biting his finger nails in agitation and worry.

**My hand felt like it was wrapped in molten lead, but I managed not to drop Riptide. I stuck the Fury on the left with its hilt, sending her toppling backward into a seat. I turned and sliced the Fury on the right. As soon as the blade connected with her neck, she screamed and exploded into dust. Annabeth got Mrs. Dodds in a wrestler's hold and yanked her backward while Grover ripped the whip out of her hands.**

**"Ow!" he yelled. "Ow! Hot! Hot!"**

"Well noooo, we all thought that a flaming whip would be cold!"

"I thought I told you to shut it Clarisse."

**The Fury I'd hilt-slammed came at me again, talons ready, but I swung Riptide and she broke open like a piñata.**

**Mrs. Dodds was trying to get Annabeth off her back. She kicked, clawed, hissed and bit, but Annabeth held on while Grover got Mrs. Dodds's legs tied up in her own whip. Finally they both shoved her backward into the aisle. Mrs. Dodds tried to get up, but she didn't have room to flap her bat wings, so she kept falling down.**

"Gods I whish I could see that."

**"Zeus will destroy you!" she promised. "Hades will have your soul!"**

"No they won't!" Poseidon growled.

**"**_**Braccas meas vescimini**_**!" I yelled.**

At this Jason laughed, even Reyna looked as though she was biting her lip to hold it in. "Excuse me?"

"Did he just say….?"

"Yep!"

"Oh gods."

**I wasn't sure where the Latin came from.**

**I think it meant "Eat my pants!"**

Now everyone else, finally getting the joke, joined in with the laughter.

**Thunder shook the bus. The hair rose on the back of my neck.**

**"Get out!" Annabeth yelled at me. "Now!" I didn't need any encouragement.**

**We rushed outside and found the other passengers wandering around in a daze, arguing with the driver, or running around in circles yelling, "We're going to die!" A Hawaiian-shirted tourist with a camera snapped my photograph before I could recap my sword.**

**"Our bags!" Grover realized. "We left our—"**

_**BOOOOOM**_**!**

"Too late!" Snickered Dionysus.

**The windows of the bus exploded as the passengers ran for cover. Lightning shredded a huge crater in the roof, but an angry wail from inside told me Mrs. Dodds was not yet dead.**

**"Run!" Annabeth said. "She's calling for reinforcements! We have to get out of here!"**

"Wow, you spear fury?"

"No, but it was pretty obvious, given the situation and all."

**We plunged into the woods as the rain poured down, the bus in flames behind us, and nothing but darkness ahead.**

"Okay, that's the end of the chapter." Nico passed the book on to the boy beside him who stood up and bowed.

"Travis Stoll, son of Hermes!"

With that, he sat down and read **"We Visit the Garden Gnome Emporium,"**


	13. We Visit the Garden Gnome Emporium

**We Visit the Garden Gnome Emporium**

**In a way, it's nice to know there are Greek gods out there, because you have somebody to blame when things go wrong.**

"Now that," Connor managed to get out through his laughter, "Is a very good point!"

At this, Travis nodded and said solemnly, "I'm sorry bro, but you really do sound like you share a brain with Percy… and that is not a compliment!"

"HEY!"

**For instance, when you're walking away from a bus that's just been attacked by monster hags and blown up by lightning, and it's raining on top of everything else, most people might think that's just really bad luck; when you're a half-blood, you understand that some divine force really is trying to mess up your day.**

"Can't argue with that!" Hades snickered darkly, before he earned a quick shower… starfish included.

**So there we were, Annabeth and Grover and I, walking through the woods along the New Jersey riverbank, the glow of New York City making the night sky yellow behind us, and the smell of the Hudson reeking in our noses.**

"Ummm, should I clean that up?" Poseidon mused quietly, then he jumped back at the sudden force of the demigods' reply.

"YES!"

**Grover was shivering and braying, his big goat eyes turned slit-pupiled and full of terror.**

"I love it when they do that!"

"DIONYSUS!"

"Sorry Daddy."

**"Three Kindly Ones. All three at once."**

"Yes brother, all three at once!" The sea god growled at his older brother threateningly. Hades leaned back and shrugged, deciding that he did not care about the future anymore.

**I was pretty much in shock myself. The explosion of bus windows still rang in my ears. But Annabeth kept pulling us along, saying: "Come on! The farther away we get, the better."**

"Good advice." Athena stated grudgingly, she was still not happy with her daughter.

**"All our money was back there," I reminded her. "Our food and clothes. Everything."**

**"Well, maybe if you hadn't decided to jump into the fight—"**

**"What did you want me to do? Let you get killed?"**

"You really blamed him for_ that? _You and Grover would have been _killed _if he didn't!_" _Taking their que from the oracle, everyone turned to look at Annabeth skeptically, the girl herself just shrugged.

"You tell me you wouldn't react that way in that kind of situation!"

"WE WOULDN'T" Came the unanimous response, well apart from Nico and Thalia who just shrugged and grinned.

**"You didn't need to protect me, Percy. I would've been fine."**

**"Sliced like sandwich bread," Grover put in, "but fine."**

"Is he always that optimistic?" Piper leaned over to ask Travis.

"Ummmmm, yeah, that's about it really."

**"Shut up, goat boy," said Annabeth.**

**Grover brayed mournfully. "Tin cans ... a perfectly good bag of tin cans."**

"Of course, _that's _what he's worried about." Will snickered.

**We sloshed across mushy ground, through nasty twisted trees that smelled like sour laundry.**

Everyone in the room shuddered slightly at this.

**After a few minutes, Annabeth fell into line next to me. "Look, I..." Her voice faltered. "I appreciate your coming back for us, okay? That was really brave."**

"Annabeth, what the _HADES _are you doing?"

"Why mother, isn't it _obvious?_ I'm complimenting the sea spawn!" Aiming to avoid another fight between the wisdom goddess and her daughter, Travis quickly read on, cutting off whatever it was that Athena was about to say.

**"We're a team, right?"**

**She was silent for a few more steps. "It's just that if you died ... aside from the fact that it would really suck for you, it would mean the quest was over. This may be my only chance to see the real world."**

"Aww, so that's why you were so worried about him." The goddess of love pouted at this newly revealed information while Annabeth just smirked guiltily into the dolphin.

**The thunderstorm had finally let up. The city glow faded behind us, leaving us in almost total darkness. I couldn't see anything of Annabeth except a glint of her blond hair.**

**"You haven't left Camp Half-Blood since you were seven?" I asked her.**

**"No... only short field trips. My dad—"**

**"The history professor."**

**"Yeah. It didn't work out for me living at home. I mean, Camp Half-Blood**_**is **_**my home." She was rushing her words out now, as if she were afraid somebody might try to stop her.**

"Well, in my defense, Percy didn't seem like someone with a long enough attention span to actually listen for any length of time!"

As if to prove his girlfriend's point, baby Percy chose that moment precisely to flip off of his cousin's lap and start running around the room with his arms outstretched making airplane noises.

**"At camp you train and train. And that's all cool and everything, but the real world is where the monsters are. That's where you learn whether you're any good or not."**

"Yeah, it's no fun stealing from the stores at camp, out in the real world is the challenge we needed!" Connor grinned across at his brother.

"Yup, even though everyone was asleep at the time."

Hermes looked on at his sons with a look of gloating affection stretching across his face while his hands started to drift towards Aphrodite's compact that was set on the arm of her chair next to his, after all, what is the old say, like father like sons?

**If I didn't know better, I could've sworn I heard doubt in her voice.**

**"You're pretty good with that knife," I said.**

"YES, at least someone is keeping the romance alive!" The love goddess squealed, throwing her arms up into the air and slapping Hermes in the face at the same time. Piper leaned across to Leo, looking disgusted.

"We are _not _related!"

"You never know beauty Queen, I think I can see the resemblance!"

A large slapping sound could suddenly be heard through the whole of Olympus.

**"You think so?"**

**"Anybody who can piggyback-ride a Fury is okay by me."**

"I want a go at that!" A red faced Leo piped up, his eyes glittering with the new idea.

**I couldn't really see, but I thought she might've smiled.**

"I did."

**"You know," she said, "maybe I should tell you... Something funny back on the bus..."**

**Whatever she wanted to say was interrupted by a shrill**_**toot-toot-toot, **_**like the sound of an owl being tortured.**

Athena glared at where Travis held the book, "It better not be!"

"Don't worry mom, it was something worse than that!"

**"Hey, my reed pipes still work!" Grover cried.**

"See?" All the demigods fell about laughing at Annabeth's comment.

**"If I could just remember a 'find path' song, we could get out of these woods!"**

"Did it work?" Katie asked eagerly.

"Nope!"

**He puffed out a few notes, but the tune still sounded suspiciously like Hilary Duff.**

**Instead of finding a path, I immediately slammed into a tree and got a nice-size knot on my head.**

"Fail" Connor and Travis laughed the latter struggling not to drop the book in his mirth.

**Add to the list of superpowers I did**_**not **_**have: infrared vision.**

"Um, since when did being a demigod become the same as being a super hero?" Nico laughed.

"Since I had the power to manipulate fire!" Leo cheered happily.

**After tripping and cursing and generally feeling miserable for another mile or so, I started to see light up ahead: the colors of a neon sign. I could smell food. Fried, greasy, excellent food.**

Artemis shuddered, "Boys!"

Hearing this, Apollo turned to her; "Yes lil sis?"

"You are all disgusting… and I'm not your lil sis!"

**I realized I hadn't eaten anything unhealthy since I'd arrived at Half-Blood Hill, where we lived on grapes, bread, cheese, and extra-lean-cut nymph-prepared barbecue. This boy needed a double cheeseburger.**

Demeter sniffed, "No, you need CEREAL!"

**We kept walking until I saw a deserted two-lane road through the trees. On the other side was a closed-down gas station, a tattered billboard for a 1990s movie, and one open business, which was the source of the neon light and the good smell.**

**It wasn't a fast-food restaurant like I'd hoped. It was one of those weird roadside curio shops that sell lawn flamingos and wooden Indians and cement grizzly bears and stuff like that. The main building was a long, low warehouse, surrounded by acres of statuary. The neon sign above the gate was impossible for me to read, because if there's anything worse for my dyslexia than regular English, it's red cursive neon English.**

**To me, it looked like:**_**ATNYU MES GDERAN GOMEN MEPROUIM.**_

Travis struggled to pronounce the words, pulling faces all the while and sending everyone into a fit of giggles… again.

**"What the heck does that say?" I asked.**

**"I don't know," Annabeth said.**

**She loved reading so much, I'd forgotten she was dyslexic, too.**

**Grover translated: "Aunty Em's Garden Gnome Emporium."**

Hades grinned evily, he knew this place.

**Flanking the entrance, as advertised, were two cement garden gnomes, ugly bearded little runts, smiling and waving, as if they were about to get their picture taken.**

**I crossed the street, following the smell of the hamburgers.**

**"Hey..." Grover warned.**

Everyone sat forward in anticipation, "Is it a trap?" Athena queried her daughter, who just shook her head mysteriously.

**"The lights are on inside," Annabeth said. "Maybe it's open."**

**"Snack bar," I said wistfully.**

**"Snack bar," she agreed.**

**"Are you two crazy?" Grover said. "This place is weird."**

"Well, at least the satyr is good for… Thalia, stop _shocking _me!" Zeus growled, staring at his youngest daughter, who just shrugged.

"You shouldn't be bad mouthing my friend, and anyway, it wasn't me!"

All eyes fell on Jason who just grinned guiltily.

"I just wanted to try it at least once!"

**We ignored him.**

Poseidon sighed and put his head in his hands, this wasn't going to be good, he just _knew _it.

**The front lot was a forest of statues: cement animals, cement children, even a cement satyr playing the pipes, which gave Grover the creeps.**

_**"Bla-ha-ha!"**_**he bleated. "Looks like my Uncle Ferdinand!"**

Athena's eyes suddenly lit up and she turned to mouth the word _Medusa _at her daughter who just nodded. The goddess' face fell, whatever happened next was her fault.

**We stopped at the warehouse door.**

**"Don't knock," Grover pleaded. "I smell monsters."**

**"Your nose is clogged up from the Furies," Annabeth told him.**

All eyes fell on the girl as she now tried to hide between the fluffy blue toy.

"Annie, what were you _thinking?_" Thalia choked.

"I wasn't, I was hungry!"

**"All I smell is burgers. Aren't you hungry?"**

**"Meat!" he said scornfully. "I'm a vegetarian."**

**"You eat cheese enchiladas and aluminum cans," I reminded him.**

**"Those are vegetables. Come on. Let's leave. These statues are ... looking at me."**

Once again , laughter filled the throne room of Olympus.

**Then the door creaked open, and standing in front of us was a tall Middle Eastern woman—at least, I assumed she was Middle Eastern, because she wore a long black gown that covered everything but her hands, and her head was completely veiled. Her eyes glinted behind a curtain of black gauze, but that was about all I could make out. Her coffee-colored hands looked old, but well-manicured and elegant, so I imagined she was a grandmother who had once been a beautiful lady.**

Poseidon groaned from somewhere behind his hands, he _really _did not like where this was going. There was a general gasp from both gods and demigods alike as they realized what was happening.

**Her accent sounded vaguely Middle Eastern, too. She said, "Children, it is too late to be out all alone. Where are your parents?"**

**"They're ... um ..." Annabeth started to say.**

**"We're orphans," I said.**

**"Orphans?" the woman said. The word sounded alien in her mouth. "But, my dears! Surely not!"**

**"We got separated from our caravan," I said. "Our circus caravan.**

"Yes, Percy I c_an _believe came from a circus caravan!" Katie snickered behind her hand.

**The ringmaster told us to meet him at the gas station if we got lost, but he may have forgotten, or maybe he meant a different gas station. Anyway, we're lost. Is that food I smell?"**

"Wow, the boy has sooo much tact!" Ares sneered, but he was on the edge of his seat, action was about to ensue, he just knew it!

**"Oh, my dears," the woman said. "You must come in, poor children. I am Aunty Em. Go straight through to the back of the warehouse, please. There is a dining area."**

**We thanked her and went inside.**

**Annabeth muttered to me, "Circus caravan?"**

**"Always have a strategy, right?"**

Athena hissed, "That only counts if the strategy is a _good _one!"

**"Your head is full of kelp."**

"Yes, it is, I checked the last time he got into a fight with Clarisse!" Will spoke solemnly, while Connor stared at him unhappily.

"Such a bad joke mate, a really bad one!"

**The warehouse was filled with more statues—people in all different poses, wearing all different outfits and with different expressions on their faces. I was thinking you'd have to have a pretty huge garden to fit even one of these statues, because they were all life-size. But mostly, I was thinking about food.**

"She better serve the children Cereal!" Demeter whined at the same time that Artemis once again spat out the word _boys _with enough venom to fill a chimera. Again, they were both ignored.

**Go ahead, call me an idiot**

"YOU'RE AN IDIOT!" Everyone in the room happily obliged.

**for walking into a strange lady's shop like that just because I was hungry,**

"** but I do impulsive stuff sometimes. Plus, you've never smelled Aunty Em's burgers. The aroma was like laughing gas in the dentist's chair—it made everything else go away. I barely noticed Grover's nervous whimpers, or the way the statues' eyes seemed to follow me, or the fact that Aunty Em had locked the door behind us.**

"Really kid, _always _have an escape route planned!" Hermes grabbed the running child and instructed him on the finer points of being a thief while his son read on.

**All I cared about was finding the dining area. And sure enough, there it was at the back of the warehouse, a fast-food counter with a grill, a soda fountain, a pretzel heater, and a nacho cheese dispenser. Everything you could want, plus a few steel picnic tables out front.**

**"Please, sit down," Aunty Em said.**

The throne room went silent as the sea god started slamming his head against the wall behind him.

**"Awesome," I said.**

**"Um," Grover said reluctantly, "we don't have any money, ma'am."**

"Yes, because she reaaaaaly wants money from you!" Hephaestus sighed, the boy really _was _an idiot.

**Before I could jab him in the ribs, Aunty Em said, "No, no, children. No money. This is a special case, yes? It is my treat, for such nice orphans."**

**"Thank you, ma'am," Annabeth said.**

"And you seriously didn't find that suspicious in the slightest?" Piper looked at her skeptically.

"Well… there are _some _nice people in the world!" Annabeth reasoned.

**Aunty Em stiffened, as if Annabeth had done something wrong, but then the old woman relaxed just as quickly, so I figured it must've been my imagination.**

**"Quite all right, Annabeth," she said. "You have such beautiful gray eyes, child."**

"Hang on, when did you tell her your names?" Nico asked, only to get a flat reply.

"We didn't."

**Only later did I wonder how she knew Annabeth's name, even though we had never introduced ourselves.**

**Our hostess disappeared behind the snack counter and started cooking. Before we knew it, she'd brought us plastic trays heaped with double cheeseburgers, vanilla shakes, and XXL servings of French fries.**

Once again, the room filled with the smell of the food described and the two brothers could be seen feasting on large stacks of fries and ambrosia, until, with a wave of her hand, Demeter turned it all to cereal and they spat it out pretty quickly. Baby Percy even burst into tears as his new pacifier (a small pile of fries) turned into some horrible brown stuff.

**I was halfway through my burger before I remembered to breathe.**

**Annabeth slurped her shake.**

**Grover picked at the fries, and eyed the tray's waxed paper liner as if he might go for that, but he still looked too nervous to eat.**

**"What's that hissing noise?" he asked.**

**I listened, but didn't hear anything. Annabeth shook her head.**

**"Hissing?" Aunty Em asked. "Perhaps you hear the deep-fryer oil. You have keen ears, Grover."**

**"I take vitamins. For my ears."**

"No need to cover up now, she already knows!" Athena sighed.

**"That's admirable," she said. "But please, relax."**

"She really does seem kind, it's a pity that she was trying to kill you." Sighed Hestia.

**Aunt Em ate nothing. She hadn't taken off her head dress, even to cook, and now she sat forward and interlaced her fingers and watched us eat. It was a little unsettling, having someone stare at me when I couldn't see her face, but I was feeling satisfied after the burger, and a little sleepy, and I figured the least I could do was try to make small talk with our hostess.**

**"So, you sell gnomes," I said, trying to sound interested.**

**"Oh, yes," Aunty Em said. "And animals. And people. Anything for the garden. Custom orders. Statuary is very popular, you know."**

**"A lot of business on this road?"**

**"Not so much, no. Since the highway was built... most cars, they do not go this way now. I must cherish every customer I get."**

**My neck tingled, as if somebody else was looking at me. I turned, but it was just a statue of a young girl holding an Easter basket.**

Artemis hissed, glaring t her sister, who just shrugged, to engrossed in finding out what was to become of her daughter to care too much about what the moon was up to.

**The detail was incredible, much better than you see in most garden statues.**

**But something was wrong with her face. It looked as if she were startled, or even terrified.**

"I wonder why!" Hades chuckled to himself and even Nico started moving his chair away from the homicidal god.

**"Ah," Aunty Em said sadly. "You notice some of my creations do not turn out well. They are marred. They do not sell. The face is the hardest to get right. Always the face."**

"Yes because when they see you, they scream!" Poseidon groaned. Hearing the pained tone in his daddy's voice, baby Percy ran over to him and started petting his knee.

"It okay daddy, it okay!"

**"You make these statues yourself?" I asked.**

**"Oh, yes. Once upon a time, I had two sisters to help me in the business, but they have passed on, and Aunty Em is alone. I have only my statues. This is why I make them, you see. They are my company." The sadness in her voice sounded so deep and so real that I couldn't help feeling sorry for her.**

"Yes, she only wants to kill you, why not feel sorry for her. Man Prissy is an idiot!" Clarisse rolled her eyes in disgust, but it was only to hide the worry she had for her friends' safety.

**Annabeth had stopped eating. She sat forward and said, "Two sisters?"**

"Oh, so _now _wisdom's daughter catches on!" Reyna sighed, eyeing Annabeth darkly, referring to a prophecy that the others had yet to hear.

**"It's a terrible story," Aunty Em said. "Not one for children, really. You see, Annabeth, a bad woman was jealous of me, long ago, when I was young.**

Athena scoffed, but before she could comment, Travis hurried on, realized he had misread all of the words, went back and started again.

**I had a... a boyfriend, you know,**

"I was _not _your boyfriend!" Poseidon sighed, leaning down to pull his son into a bear hug.

Thalia shot a look at Annabeth and whispered, "Was he talking to the book or his son?" Te two of them cracked up and the son of Hermes read on.

**and this bad woman was determined to break us apart. She caused a terrible accident. My sisters stayed by me. They shared my bad fortune as long as they could, but eventually they passed on. They faded away. I alone have survived, but at a price. Such a price."**

"Ah, the perks of falling for a god." Dionysus sighed happily.

Connor looked at Leo. "I think you have a new subject in your kingdom!"

The other boy blanched, "No thanks, I'd rather not have him."

"Too bad bro, looks like he is going to be a permanent resident!"

**I wasn't sure what she meant, but I felt bad for her.**

"Percy and his bleeding heart!" Will sighed.

**My eyelids kept getting heavier, my full stomach making me sleepy. Poor old lady. Who would want to hurt somebody so nice?**

**"Percy?" Annabeth was shaking me to get my attention. "Maybe we should go. I mean, the ringmaster will be waiting."**

"Too little too late little girl!" Hestia sighed, sending a warm glance over to Annabeth who looked down embarrassed, it had been worth a shot.

**She sounded tense. I wasn't sure why. Grover was eating the waxed paper off the tray now, but if Aunty Em found that strange, she didn't say anything.**

**"Such beautiful gray eyes," Aunty Em told Annabeth again. "My, yes, it has been a long time since I've seen gray eyes like those."**

Annabeth growled, how many of her children had Medusa got over the years?

**She reached out as if to stroke Annabeth's cheek, but Annabeth stood up abruptly.**

**"We really should go."**

**"Yes!" Grover swallowed his waxed paper and stood up. "The ringmaster is waiting! Right!"**

**I didn't want to leave. I felt full and content. Aunty Em was so nice. I wanted to stay with her a while.**

**"Please, dears," Aunty Em pleaded. "I so rarely get to be with children. Before you go, won't you at least sit for a pose?"**

**"A pose?" Annabeth asked warily.**

**"A photograph. I will use it to model a new statue set.** **Children are so popular, you see. Everyone loves children."**

"NO!" Poseidon whimpered while his son went back to patting the top of his head soothingly.

**Annabeth shifted her weight from foot to foot. "I don't think we can, ma'am. Come on, Percy—"**

**"Sure we can," I said.**

"IDIOT BOY, if you get my daughter killed, so help me I…"

"Mom, unless you have forgotten, I'm sat right here!" Annabeth glared across the room.

"Oh…oh yeah."

**I was irritated with Annabeth for being so bossy, so rude to an old lady who'd just fed us for free. "It's just a photo, Annabeth. What's the harm?"**

"Hmm, well, you might end up as a statue in my father's garden, but yeah Annabeth, what's the harm?" Nico pouted over at her until Jason flicked him in the forehead.

**"Yes, Annabeth," the woman purred. "No harm."**

**I could tell Annabeth didn't like it, but she allowed Aunty Em to lead us back out the front door, into the garden of statues.**

**Aunty Em directed us to a park bench next to the stone satyr. "Now," she said, "I'll just position you correctly. The young girl in the middle, I think, and the two young gentlemen on either side."**

**"Not much light for a photo," I remarked.**

**"Oh, enough," Aunty Em said. "Enough for us to see each other, yes?"**

**"Where's your camera?" Grover asked.**

Everyone gulped in anticipation, hardly anyone dared breathe the room was so tense.

**Aunty Em stepped back, as if to admire the shot. "Now, the face is the most difficult. Can you smile for me please, everyone? A large smile?"**

**Grover glanced at the cement satyr next to him, and mumbled, "That sure does look like Uncle Ferdinand."**

**"Grover," Aunty Em chastised, "look this way, dear."**

**She still had no camera in her hands.**

"Come on Perce, figure it out!" Thalia spat out through tight lips.

**"Percy—" Annabeth said.**

**Some instinct warned me to listen to Annabeth, but I was fighting the sleepy feeling, the comfortable lull that came from the food and the old lady's voice.**

Everyone groaned. "He's in a trance!" Zeus concluded.

**"I will just be a moment," Aunty Em said. "You know, I can't see you very well in this cursed veil..."**

**"Percy, something's wrong," Annabeth insisted.**

**"Wrong?" Aunty Em said, reaching up to undo the wrap around her head. "Not at all, dear. I have such noble company tonight. What could be wrong?"**

**"That**_**is **_**Uncle Ferdinand!" Grover gasped.**

**"Look away from her!" Annabeth shouted. She whipped her Yankees cap onto her head and vanished. Her invisible hands pushed Grover and me both off the bench.**

"For once, I'm glad that you are with him child of owl-for-brains!" Poseidon nodded to Annabeth (who blushed bright crimson) while he clutched Percy closer in his arms.

**I was on the ground, looking at Aunt Em's sandaled feet.**

**I could hear Grover scrambling off in one direction, Annabeth in another. But I was too dazed to move.**

**Then I heard a strange, rasping sound above me. My eyes rose to Aunty Em's hands, which had turned gnarled and warty, with sharp bronze talons for fingernails.**

**I almost looked higher, but somewhere off to my left Annabeth screamed, "No! Don't!"**

**More rasping—the sound of tiny snakes, right above me, from ... from about where Aunty Em's head would be.**

**"Run!" Grover bleated. I heard him racing across the gravel, yelling, "**_**Maia**_**!"**

Hermes grinned, his shoes were going to come in handy after all!

**to kick-start his flying sneakers.**

**I couldn't move. I stared at Aunty Em's gnarled claws, and tried to fight the groggy trance the old woman had put me in.**

**"Such a pity to destroy a handsome young face," she told me soothingly. "Stay with me, Percy. All you have to do is look up."**

"_You will not look up, _right son?" Poseidon lectured the infant who nodded his head seriously.

"Yes daddy, Percy not look up, Percy look down!"

**I fought the urge to obey. Instead I looked to one side and saw one of those glass spheres people put in gardens— a gazing ball. I could see Aunty Em's dark reflection in the orange glass; her headdress was gone, revealing her face as a shimmering pale circle. Her hair was moving, writhing like serpents.**

**Aunty Em.**

**Aunty "M."**

**How could I have been so stupid?**

"Don't blame yourself." Athena surprisingly said this. "Blame your father."

**Think, I told myself. How did Medusa die in the myth?**

**But I couldn't think. Something told me that in the myth Medusa had been asleep when she was attacked by my namesake, Perseus. She wasn't anywhere near asleep now. If she wanted, she could take those talons right now and rake open my face.**

"If she did, she definitely would not love me anymore." Poseidon growled darkly.

**"The Gray-Eyed One did this to me, Percy," Medusa said, and she didn't sound anything like a monster. Her voice invited me to look up, to sympathize with a poor old grandmother. "Annabeth's mother, the cursed Athena, turned me from a beautiful woman into this."**

"Thanks for that mom!" Annabeth shot across the room.

**"Don't listen to her!" Annabeth's voice shouted, somewhere in the statuary. "Run, Percy!"**

**"Silence!" Medusa snarled. Then her voice modulated back to a comforting purr. "You see why I must destroy the girl, Percy. She is my enemy's daughter. I shall crush her statue to dust. But you, dear Percy, you need not suffer."**

"I can't believe she still loves you even after all you put her through!" Apollo looked at his uncle in amazement.

**"No," I muttered. I tried to make my legs move.**

**"Do you really want to help the gods?" Medusa asked. "Do you understand what awaits you on this foolish quest, Percy? What will happen if you reach the Underworld? Do not be a pawn of the Olympians, my dear. You would be better off as a statue. Less pain. Less pain."**

**"Percy!" Behind me, I heard a buzzing sound, like a two-hundred-pound hummingbird in a nosedive. Grover yelled, "Duck!"**

**I turned, and there he was in the night sky, flying in from twelve o'clock with his winged shoes fluttering, Grover, holding a tree branch the size of a baseball bat. His eyes were shut tight, his head twitched from side to side. He was navigating by ears and nose alone.**

**"Duck!" he yelled again. "I'll get her!"**

"Woo, flying goat boy!" Will cheered through his laughter.

**That finally jolted me into action. Knowing Grover, I was sure he'd miss Medusa and nail me.**

"Amazing how much confidence you have in him!" Leo mused.

**I dove to one side.**

_**Thwack!**_

**At first I figured it was the sound of Grover hitting a tree. Then Medusa roared with rage.**

**"You miserable satyr," she snarled. "I'll add you to my collection!"**

**"That was for Uncle Ferdinand!" Grover yelled back.**

**I scrambled away and hid in the statuary while Grover swooped down for another pass.**

_**Ker-whack!**_

**"Arrgh!" Medusa yelled, her snake-hair hissing and spitting.**

**Right next to me, Annabeth's voice said, "Percy!"**

**I jumped so high my feet nearly cleared a garden gnome. "Jeez! Don't do that!"**

**Annabeth took off her Yankees cap and became visible. "You have to cut her head off."**

"Ugh." Aphrodite winced, picturing the mess _that _would make of her nails.

**"What? Are you crazy? Let's get out of here."**

"Oh yes, and leave the monster there to attack more innocent people, grow a back bone Prissy!" Clarisse lectured the book.

**"Medusa is a menace. She's evil. I'd kill her myself, but..." Annabeth swallowed, as if she were about to make a difficult admission. "But you've got the better weapon. Besides, I'd never get close to her. She'd slice me to bits because of my mother. You—you've got a chance."**

**"What? I can't—"**

**"Look, do you want her turning more innocent people into statues?"**

"Of course he doesn't, he's _Percy!" _Thalia sighed.

**She pointed to a pair of statue lovers, a man and a woman with their arms around each other, turned to stone by the monster.**

"Awwwww." Aphrodite looked as though she was about to burst into tears, "Those poor people, I never got to play with their love lives before they died!"

"Figures that _that's_ what she's worried about!" Piper rolled her eyes.

**Annabeth grabbed a green gazing ball from a nearby pedestal. "A polished shield would be better." She studied the sphere critically. "The convexity will cause some distortion. The reflection's size should be off by a factor of—"**

"Is it really the time for that Annie?" Nico shot her a skeptical look.

**"Would you speak English?"**

**"I**_**am!"**_**She tossed me the glass ball.**

**"Just look at her in the glass.**_**Never**_**look at her directly."**

**"Hey, guys!" Grover yelled somewhere above us. "I think she's unconscious!"**

"Stupid satyr, that's just going to jinx it!" The wine god chuckled, highly enjoying this.

_**"Roooaaarrr!"**_

"See?"

**"Maybe not," Grover corrected. He went in for another pass with the tree branch.**

**"Hurry," Annabeth told me. "Grover's got a great nose, but he'll eventually crash."**

"Still loving the confidence!"

"Oh, shut up Leo, we were in a pretty bad situation. Plus, we were _12!"_

**I took out my pen and uncapped it. The bronze blade of Riptide elongated in my hand.**

**I followed the hissing and spitting sounds of Medusa's hair.**

**I kept my eyes locked on the gazing ball so I would only glimpse Medusa's reflection, not the real thing. Then, in the green tinted glass, I saw her.**

**Grover was coming in for another turn at bat, but this time he flew a little too low. Medusa grabbed the stick and pulled him off course. He tumbled through the air and crashed into the arms of a stone grizzly bear with a painful "Ummphh!"**

"Ooooh, your turn now boy!" Ares cheered, apparently, he was one of the only Olympians not worried for the safety of the demigods.

**Medusa was about to lunge at him when I yelled, "Hey!"**

**I advanced on her, which wasn't easy, holding a sword and a glass ball. If she charged, I'd have a hard time defending myself.**

**But she let me approach—twenty feet, ten feet.**

**I could see the reflection of her face now. Surely it wasn't really**_**that **_**ugly. The green swirls of the gazing ball must be distorting it, making it look worse.**

"Nope, nothing could make _that _look worse!" Poseidon shivered.

"But I bet I could make her look better!" The love goddess cheered happily, planning yet another makeover.

**"You wouldn't harm an old woman, Percy," she crooned. "I know you wouldn't."**

"Yes, yes he would!" Connor snickered, "Just ask poor old Mrs Dodds!"

**I hesitated, fascinated by the face I saw reflected in the glass—the eyes that seemed to burn straight through the green tint, making my arms go weak.**

**From the cement grizzly, Grover moaned, "Percy, don't listen to her!"**

**Medusa cackled. "Too late."**

**She lunged at me with her talons.**

**I slashed up with my sword, heard a sickening**_**shlock!,**_**then a hiss like wind rushing out of a cavern—the sound of a monster disintegrating.**

Now it was the sound of cheering that echoed down the mountain, that and the sound of clapping and a little boy giggling hysterically as his dad kept throwing him up into the air and catching him again.

**Something fell to the ground next to my foot. It took all my willpower not to look. I could feel warm ooze soaking into my sock, little dying snake heads tugging at my shoelaces.**

Finally pulled out of her crazy mood, Aphrodite gagged, along with Hera and a few others.

**"Oh, yuck," Grover said. His eyes were still tightly closed, but I guess he could hear the thing gurgling and steaming. "Mega-yuck."**

**Annabeth came up next to me, her eyes fixed on the sky. She was holding Medusa's black veil. She said, "Don't move."**

**Very, very carefully, without looking down, she knelt and draped the monster's head in black cloth, then picked it up. It was still dripping green juice.**

**"Are you okay?" she asked me, her voice trembling.**

"He's stud in a puddle of gorgon blood and you're asking him if he's _okay?" _Nico chocked out as everyone else started laughing… at Annabeth's expense of course.

**"Yeah," I decided, though I felt like throwing up my double cheeseburger. "Why didn't... why didn't the head evaporate?"**

**"Once you sever it, it becomes a spoil of war," she said. "Same as your minotaur horn. But don't unwrap the head. It can still petrify you."**

**Grover moaned as he climbed down from the grizzly statue. He had a big welt on his forehead. His green rasta cap hung from one of his little goat horns, and his fake feet had been knocked off his hooves. The magic sneakers were flying aimlessly around his head.**

"Ha, yeah, they do have a habit of doing that." Hermes mused, thinking of one particular time when said shoes decided that they were going to do a tap dance on the head of one of his daughters.

**"The Red Baron," I said. "Good job, man."**

"See dad, Grover is not Useless!"

"Whatever you say Thalia." The king of the gods grumbled.

**He managed a bashful grin. "That really was**_**not **_**fun, though. Well, the hitting-her-with-a-stick part, that was fun. But crashing into a concrete bear?**_**Not **_**fun."**

"Well noooo, I thought it was going to be a picnic in the Park!" Travis droned while the others laughed.

**He snatched his shoes out of the air. I recapped my sword. Together, the three of us stumbled back to the warehouse.**

**We found some old plastic grocery bags behind the snack counter and double-wrapped Medusa's head. We plopped it on the table where we'd eaten dinner and sat around it, too exhausted to speak.**

**Finally I said, "So we have Athena to thank for this monster?"**

"Yes, thank you Athena!" Poseidon shot daggers across at his niece who just pouted.

"No, it's your fault barnacle breath!"

**Annabeth flashed me an irritated look. "Your dad, actually.**

"See, even my daughter agrees with me!" Now it was the sea god's turn to pout like a little school girl, making his brothers cackle manically.

**Don't you remember? Medusa was Poseidon's girlfriend.**

"Will everyone stop saying that, she was _not _my girlfriend!"

**They decided to meet in my mother's temple. That's why Athena turned her into a monster. Medusa and her two sisters who had helped her get into the temple, they became the three gorgons. That's why Medusa wanted to slice me up, but she wanted to preserve you as a nice statue. She's still sweet on your dad. You probably reminded her of him."**

Hera looked at her nephew sat in his father's lap and grimaced, "Well, you do look really alike, but I don't think that the world is ready for 2 Poseidons!"

"Yes." Demeter agreed, "Brother hates cereal, we do not need any more than just him!"

Before Apollo could point out that _nobody _actually liked cereal, Travis quickly read on.

**My face was burning. "Oh, so now it's**_**my **_**fault we met Medusa."**

**Annabeth straightened. In a bad imitation of my voice, she said: "'It's just a photo, Annabeth. What's the harm?'"**

**"Forget it," I said. "You're impossible."**

**"You're insufferable."**

**"You're—"**

"… A very cute couple!" Aphrodite finished, making Annabeth blush and Athena scowl.

**"Hey!" Grover interrupted. "You two are giving me a migraine, and satyrs don't even**_**get **_**migraines. What are we going to do with the head?"**

**I stared at the thing. One little snake was hanging out of a hole in the plastic. The words printed on the side of the bag said: WE APPRECIATE YOUR BUSINESS!**

**I was angry, not just with Annabeth or her mom, but with all the gods**

All the Olympians with children winced at this, they got the feeling that this was a normal feeling from their children.

**for this whole quest, for getting us blown off the road and in two major fights the very first day out from camp. At this rate, we'd never make it to L.A. alive, much less before the summer solstice.**

**What had Medusa said?**

_**Do not be a pawn of the Olympians, my dear. You would be better off as a statue.**_

"Oh, don't listen to her son!" Poseidon groaned.

**I got up. "I'll be back."**

**"Percy," Annabeth called after me. "What are you—"**

"Ugh, a Percy idea, this is _not _going to end well!" Thalia sighed.

**I searched the back of the warehouse until I found Medusa's office. Her account book showed her six most recent sales, all shipments to the Underworld to decorate Hades and Persephone's garden.**

Everyone turned to glare at the lord of the underworld.

"What? Persephone needs something for her garden! Hades reasoned.

"Well, she wouldn't if you weren't a kidnapping, daughter stealing…"

Eager to avoid another millennia old argument, Travis quickly read on.

**According to one freight bill, the Underworld's billing address was DOA Recording Studios, West Hollywood, California. I folded up the bill and stuffed it in my pocket.**

"Wow, for once Percy has a good idea." Nico looked completely shocked and clutched his chest. "Oh no, the world must be ending!"

**In the cash register I found twenty dollars, a few golden drachmas, and some packing slips for Hermes Overnight Express, each with a little leather bag attached for coins. I rummaged around the rest of the office until I found the right-size box.**

**I went back to the picnic table, packed up Medusa's head, and filled out a delivery slip:**

_**The Gods**_

_**Mount Olympus**_

_**600th Floor,**_

_**Empire State Building**_

_**New York, NY**_

_**With best wishes,**_

_**PERCY JACKSON**_

The throne room was completely silent while thunder echoed across the earth. "The boy _dares…"_ Without warning, all the younger Olympians, (perhaps excluding Athena and Artemis) cracked up, joined by Hestia and the elder two brothers. Zeus and Hera however, just sat there and seethed in their thrones.

**"They're not going to like that," Grover warned. "They'll think you're impertinent."**

Once again, the sound of thunder shook the throne room.

**I poured some golden drachmas in the pouch. As soon as I closed it, there was a sound like a cash register. The package floated off the table and disappeared with a**_**pop!**_

**"I**_**am **_**impertinent," I said.**

"Got that right!" all the older demigods agreed.

**I looked at Annabeth, daring her to criticize.**

**She didn't. She seemed resigned to the fact that I had a major talent for ticking off the gods. "Come on," she muttered. "We need a new plan."**

"And, that's the end of the chapter!" Travis stated, happily chucking the book at Clarisse's head. However, before she could turn and thump him one, Hades suddenly stood.

"Wait here, I have to do something, do not continue without me!" And with that, he left, leaving them all alone in the throne room, none of them knowing exactly what to say…


	14. We Get Advice from a Poodle

They were all still waiting in silence, unmoving, when the Lord of the dead finally made his reappearance 20 minutes after his exit, but this time, he was not alone. Following in his shadow was a young girl with flowers braided into her hair.

"Kore!"

"Persephone!"

Yes, having grown tired of the conversation, Hades had gone to get his wife for some company. After she had greeted both of her parents, they sat and continued. Again, everything went quiet apart from a quiet whisper as the lord of the underworld filled in the new goddess on the story so far.

Without really waiting much longer, the girl with the book stood and bowed to the gods, "Clarisse La Rue, daughter of Ares!" and once again, the story continued…

"**We Get Advice from a Poodle,"**

"Are all the chapter titles so strange my Lord?" Persephone asked her husband who just shrugged.

"The boy is a child of my brother, so we shouldn't really expect too much my dear."

**We were pretty miserable that night.**

"Hmmm, I wonder why?" Travis stroked his imaginary beard in mock thoughtfulness, earning a glare off of Annabeth, but she decided not to dignify that comment with a response.

**We camped out in the woods, a hundred yards from the main road, in a marshy clearing that local kids had obviously been using for parties.**

**The ground was littered with flattened soda cans and fast-food wrappers.**

**We'd taken some food and blankets from Aunty Em's, but we didn't dare light a fire to dry our damp clothes. The Furies and Medusa had provided enough excitement for one day. We didn't want to attract anything else.**

"Wimps!" Clarisse cut herself off before quickly reading on. By the looks of the faces in the room, this was probably a good idea.

**We decided to sleep in shifts. I volunteered to take first watch.**

"Percy the gentleman." Connor stood and did a mock bow.

"Well, that puts him in a higher sanding than you!" Piper remarked with a smirk that got everyone laughing again.

**Annabeth curled up on the blankets and was snoring as soon as her head hit the ground.**

"I do _not _snore!"

"Yes you do Annie, we've all heard you!" Thalia poked her friend in the ribs teasingly.

**Grover fluttered with his flying shoes to the lowest bough of a tree, put his back to the trunk, and stared at the night sky.**

**"Go ahead and sleep," I told him. "I'll wake you if there's trouble."**

**He nodded, but still didn't close his eyes. "It makes me sad, Percy."**

**"What does? The fact that you signed up for this stupid quest?"**

**"No.**_**This **_**makes me sad." He pointed at all the garbage on the ground. "And the sky. You can't even see the stars. They've polluted the sky. This is a terrible time to be a satyr."**

"That is too true. Mortals are slowly destroying this beautiful planet." The goddess of the harvest looked down, her face full of so much remorse that the demigods were filled with remorse, they had all forgotten that Demeter had a human side too.

**"Oh, yeah. I guess you'd be an environmentalist."**

**He glared at me. "Only a human wouldn't be. Your species is clogging up the world so fast ... ah, never mind. It's useless to lecture a human. At the rate things are going, I'll never find Pan."**

Hermes sighed, "Why are all the Satyrs so obsessed with finding my son when he doesn't want to be found?"

**"Pam? Like the cooking spray?"**

The council whole room was filled with laughter once again.

"Oooh, Grover's not going to like that!" Will snickered into his hand.

**"Pan!" he cried indignantly. "P-A-N. The great god Pan! What do you think I want a searcher's license for?"**

**A strange breeze rustled through the clearing, temporarily overpowering the stink of trash and muck. It brought the smell of berries and wildflowers and clean rain water, things that might've once been in these woods. Suddenly I was nostalgic for something I'd never known.**

**"Tell me about the search," I said.**

**Grover looked at me cautiously, as if he were afraid I was just making fun.**

"Percy would never make fun of his friends… Rachel stated before she thought about it for a bit and amended her statement, "much."

**"The God of Wild Places disappeared two thousand years ago," he told me. "A sailor off the coast of Ephesos heard a mysterious voice crying out from the shore, 'Tell them that the great god Pan has died!' When humans heard the news, they believed it. They've been pillaging Pan's kingdom ever since. But for the satyrs, Pan was our lord and master. He protected us and the wild places of the earth. We refuse to believe that he died. In every generation, the bravest satyrs pledge their lives to finding Pan. They search the earth, exploring all the wildest places, hoping to find where he is hidden, and wake him from his sleep."**

Again Hermes sighed, he didn't think that any of the Satyrs would be able to find Pan if he did not want to be found, but he could still hope…

**"And you want to be a searcher."**

**"It's my life's dream," he said. "My father was a searcher. And my Uncle Ferdinand ... the statue you saw back there—"**

"Poor Grover." Katie looked as though she was thinking of bursting into tears.

**"Oh, right, sorry."**

**Grover shook his head. "Uncle Ferdinand knew the risks. So did my dad. But I'll succeed. I'll be the first searcher to return alive."**

**"Hang on—**_**the first?"**_

The demigods shifted uncomfortably in their chairs.

**Grover took his reed pipes out of his pocket. "No searcher has ever come back. Once they set out, they disappear. They're never seen alive again."**

**"Not once in two thousand years?"**

**"No."**

**"And your dad? You have no idea what happened to him?"**

**"None."**

**"But you still want to go," I said, amazed. "I mean, you really think you'll be the one to find Pan?"**

**"I have to believe that, Percy. Every searcher does. It's the only thing that keeps us from despair when we look at what humans have done to the world. I have to believe Pan can still be awakened."**

**I stared at the orange haze of the sky and tried to understand how Grover could pursue a dream that seemed so hopeless. Then again, was I any better?**

"Nope!" Hades chuckled darkly, and then he explained for the benefit of his wife. "The boy believes that he can challenge _me _to get his mother back!"

"Oh, will I be there?"

"Nope, it's a summer solstice deadline." His eyes glittered with a gleeful malice as he said this, enough so to make everyone else in the room flinch.

"The poor boy!"

**"How are we going to get into the Underworld?" I asked him. "I mean, what chance do we have against a god?"**

"About as much chance as you have against a Titan." Nico cheered, earning himself some strange looks from the gods and a slap over the head from his cousin, whose hand started drifting to where her bow lay across her back.

"Idiot, we're not allowed to give spoilers!"

"Ooops!"

**"I don't know," he admitted. "But back at Medusa's, when you were searching her office? Annabeth was telling me—"**

**"Oh, I forgot. Annabeth will have a plan all figured out."**

Not figuring out the sarcasm in the words, Athena smiled proudly at her daughter, who only scowled in response.

**"Don't be so hard on her, Percy. She's had a tough life, but she's a good person. After all, she forgave me..." His voice faltered.**

Zeus growled quietly, but stopped when Thalia gave him a warning glare.

**"What do you mean?" I asked. "Forgave you for what?"**

**Suddenly, Grover seemed very interested in playing notes on his pipes.**

**"Wait a minute," I said. "Your first keeper job was five years ago. Annabeth has been at camp five years. She wasn't ... I mean, your first assignment that went wrong—"**

**"I can't talk about it," Grover said, and his quivering lower lip suggested he'd start crying if I pressed him. "But as I was saying, back at Medusa's, Annabeth and I agreed there's something strange going on with this quest. Some thing isn't what it seems."**

**"Well, duh. I'm getting blamed for stealing a thunder bolt that Hades took."**

"That's it!" Hades lunged across his youngest brother to snatch his nephew from Poseidon's lap, in a flash, he had the small boy sat on his knee and was staring at him intently (and evily), "I did _not _steal the stupid lightning bolt, _did _I boy?"

"No Mr ghosty. Mr scawwy ghost no steal bolt!"

"Hades, your scaring the poor boy!" Hestia scorned him, scooping up her Percy and taking him back to her place by the fire where he snuggled down into her arms.

**"That's not what I mean," Grover said. "The Fur—The Kindly Ones were sort of holding back. Like Mrs. Dodds at Yancy Academy ... why did she wait so long to try to kill you? Then on the bus, they just weren't as aggressive as they could've been."**

"That's for sure!" Hades cackled.

Piper leaned over to talk to Leo, but before she could even get a word out he shook his head sharply.

"No access in Leo world for homicidal gods, it says so in the rule book!" To everyone's amazement, he actually reached into his tool belt and pulled out a battered red book that actually said _rules _on it… "what?"

"Leo… you never cease to amaze me!" She sighed shaking her head, to which he just grinned.

**"They seemed plenty aggressive to me."**

"Trust me, they are twenty times worse than that!" Nico shuddered as he tried to suppress a memory that everyone was too scared to ask him about.

**Grover shook his head. "They were screeching at us: 'Where is it? Where?'"**

**"Asking about me," I said.**

**"Maybe ... but Annabeth and I, we both got the feeling they weren't asking about a person. They said 'Where is**_**it**_**?' They seemed to be asking about an object."**

**"That doesn't make sense."**

**"I know. But if we've misunderstood something about this quest, and we only have nine days to find the master bolt..." He looked at me like he was hoping for answers, but I didn't have any.**

"Not that he will have any, the boy's head is full of kelp!" Athena sniffed.

**I thought about what Medusa had said: I was being used by the gods. What lay ahead of me was worse than petrification. "I haven't been straight with you," I told Grover. "I don't care about the master bolt. I agreed to go to the Underworld so I could bring back my mother."**

"And so the truth is revealed!" Connor announced dramatically, hoping to get a few laughs that never came.

**Grover blew a soft note on his pipes. "I know that, Percy. But are you sure that's the only reason?"**

**"I'm not doing it to help my father. He doesn't care about me. I don't care about him."**

Poseidon flinched at this and called over to the fire. "Love you Percy."

"Me too!" came the reply causing all of them to laugh. Moving his mouth to his sister's ear Jason whispered, "Is he saying he loves Poseidon or that he loves himself?"

"It's Percy, so I will say the latter!" The two of the proceeded to nearly fall out of their chairs they were laughing so hard.

**Grover gazed down from his tree branch. "Look, Percy, I'm not as smart as Annabeth. I'm not as brave as you. But I'm pretty good at reading emotions. You're glad your dad is alive. You feel good that he's claimed you, and part of you wants to make him proud. That's why you mailed Medusa's head to Olympus. You wanted him to notice what you'd done."**

**"Yeah? Well maybe satyr emotions work differently than human emotions. Because you're wrong. I don't care what he thinks."**

Athena sighed and looked at the children, "You don't _all _feel like that do you?"

No response came, but there was an uneasy shifting as the demigods tried to avoid making eye contact with their parents.

**Grover pulled his feet up onto the branch. "Okay, Percy. Whatever."**

**"Besides, I haven't done anything worth bragging about. We barely got out of New York and we're stuck here with no money and no way west."**

**Grover looked at the night sky, like he was thinking about that problem. "How about**_**I**_**take first watch, huh? You get some sleep."**

**I wanted to protest, but he started to play Mozart, soft and sweet, and I turned away, my eyes stinging. After a few bars of Piano Concerto no. 12, I was asleep.**

**In my dreams, I stood in a dark cavern before a gaping pit.**

Annabeth's flinch caught her mother's attention, just a second before everything clicked into place… the voice, the pit, the bolt… OH! The wisdom goddess' eyes widened to make her look like an owl, but unfortunately, no one noticed.

The throne room once again fell silent as everyone waited to hear what would happen next.

**Gray mist creatures churned all around me, whispering rags of smoke that I somehow knew were the spirits of the dead. They tugged at my clothes, trying to pull me back, but I felt compelled to walk forward to the very edge of the chasm.**

"No, don't go over there son, it is a bad place!" Poseidon's head once again found his hands as he prepared for another panic attack.

Hades' face darkened as he tried to work out why _his _subjects would be trying to help out the child of his _brother._

**Looking down made me dizzy.**

Thalia gulped, _that _she could sympathize with!

**The pit yawned so wide and was so completely black, I knew it must be bottomless. Yet I had a feeling that something was trying to rise from the abyss, something huge and evil.**

The 6 older Olympians shared a dark look and they all focused upon the book, even Hestia moved away from her fire in order to hear better, the baby in her arms all but forgotten.

_**The little hero, **_**an amused voice echoed far down in the darkness.**_**Too weak, too young, but perhaps you will do.**_

**The voice felt ancient—cold and heavy. It wrapped around me like sheets of lead.**

_**They have misled you, boy, **_**it said.**_**Barter with me. I will give you what you want.**_

"Impossible!" Hades breathed out through clenched teeth, this could _not _be happening, suddenly his son's comment about the titan was beginning to make some sense…

**A shimmering image hovered over the void: my mother, frozen at the moment she'd dissolved in a shower of gold. Her face was distorted with pain, as if the Minotaur were still squeezing her neck. Her eyes looked directly at me, pleading:**_**Go!**_

"No, no, no, no, no, no!" This time, the sea god was not the only one to look worried, both of his brothers and his two sisters had equally anxious expressions. No one noticed the little squeal that came from Annabeth as she buried her head in the blue fuzz once again.

**I tried to cry out, but my voice wouldn't work.**

**Cold laughter echoed from the chasm.**

**An invisible force pulled me forward. It would drag me into the pit unless I stood firm.**

_**Help me rise, boy. **_**The voice became hungrier.**_**Bring me the bolt. Strike a blow against the treacherous gods!**_

Athena shook her head in disbelief. Apollo and Hermes had on uncharacteristically solemn expressions. Finally catching on, Aphrodite gave a tiny scream and her compact fell to the floor, shattering the mirror.

**The spirits of the dead whispered around me,**_**No! Wake!**_

Everyone was too tense to say a word at this point.

**The image of my mother began to fade. The thing in the pit tightened its unseen grip around me.**

**I realized it wasn't interested in pulling me in. It was using me to pull itself**_**out.**_

"Wake up, wake up, wake up wake up!" Poseidon chanted under his breath.

_**Good, **_**it murmured.**_**Good.**_

_**Wake! **_**the dead whispered.**_**Wake!**_

**Someone was shaking me.**

**My eyes opened, and it was daylight.**

**"Well," Annabeth said, "the zombie lives."**

"I never thought that I would be so glad to hear a child of the owl speak, but here I am." The sea god growled as the tension in the room lessened slightly. Shuddering slightly, Zeus turned to the others.

"It is not all that bad, father has stirred before, this doesn't mean that he is rising or anything!" He tried to be reassuring, but his shaking voice was not fooling anyone.

**I was trembling from the dream. I could still feel the grip of the chasm monster around my chest. "How long was I asleep?"**

**"Long enough for me to cook breakfast." Annabeth tossed me a bag of nacho-flavored corn chips from Aunty Em's snack bar.**

"NO!" Everyone turned with a shocked look to see Demeter on her feet. They were all thinking that it was something serious but… "You cannot eat that _rubbish _for breakfast, you all need…"

Trying to shut up the crazed goddess, Clarisse read on.

**"And Grover went exploring. Look, he found a friend."**

**My eyes had trouble focusing.**

**Grover was sitting cross-legged on a blanket with something fuzzy in his lap, a dirty, unnaturally pink stuffed animal.**

**No. It wasn't a stuffed animal. It was a pink poodle.**

"I love poodles!" Aphrodite smiled, "They're sooooo cuuuute!" Piper just sat in her chair, shaking her head in disbelief.

**The poodle yapped at me suspiciously. Grover said, "No, he's not."**

**I blinked. "Are you ... talking to that thing?"**

"I wonder what it said?" Travis mused randomly.

**The poodle growled.**

**"This**_**thing**_**," Grover warned, "is our ticket west. Be nice to him."**

**"You can talk to animals?"**

**Grover ignored the question. "Percy, meet Gladiola. Gladiola, Percy."**

Everyone in the room burst out laughing. Honestly, it wasn't really that funny, but they all needed something to break the tension so the laughter was loud… if a little forced.

**I stared at Annabeth, figuring she'd crack up at this practical joke they were playing on me, but she looked deadly serious.**

**"I'm not saying hello to a pink poodle," I said. "Forget it."**

"Yes Percy, be a man!" Connor cheered.

**"Percy," Annabeth said. "I said hello to the poodle. You say hello to the poodle."**

"Just say hello to the poodle Percy!" Katie sighed.

Travis grinned, "Of course he will, Annabeth told him too."

**The poodle growled.**

**I said hello to the poodle.**

"See!" He said smugly while his brother wailed in the corner.

"Why? Percy, where is your _shame? _Men do _not _say hello to _poodles, _especially not _pink _ones!"

Leo grinned, his kingdom was steadily growing.

**Grover explained that he'd come across Gladiola in the woods and they'd struck up a conversation. The poodle had run away from a rich local family, who'd posted a $200 reward for his return. Gladiola didn't really want to go back to his family,** **but he was willing to if it meant helping Grover.**

"OOOOOH! A love interest for Grover!" The goddess of love squealed, bursting a few ear drums.

"MOM, Gladiola is a BOY, not to mention a POODLE!"

"What's your point sweetie?"

"Never mind!"

**"How does Gladiola know about the reward?" I asked.**

**"He read the signs," Grover said. "Duh."**

**"Of course," I said. "Silly me."**

"Wow, that poodle is smarter than Travis!" Thalia spoke into the silence, causing everyone to crack up. Travis himself just shrugged.

"Can't argue with that!"

**"So we turn in Gladiola," Annabeth explained in her best strategy voice, "we get money, and we buy tickets to Los Angeles. Simple."**

**I thought about my dream—the whispering voices of the dead, the thing in the chasm, and my mother's face, shimmering as it dissolved into gold. All that might be waiting for me in the West.**

**"Not another bus," I said warily.**

**"No," Annabeth agreed.**

**She pointed downhill, toward train tracks I hadn't been able to see last night in the dark. "There's an Amtrak station half a mile that way. According to Gladiola, the west bound train leaves at noon."**

"That's it!" Clarisse griped, "Now can I put the stupid book down?"

Annabeth sighed, "Well, we don't know who you need to pass it too, the plan was that Percy was meant to be here by no…."

Her words were cut short by a bright flash in the middle of the room and a boy's voice.

"Hey Wise girl, mind if I crash the party?"


	15. I plunge to my death

When the smoke cleared, everyone could plainly see a tall-ish boy of around 16 with slick black curls, sea green eyes and a crooked grin. However, that was the only thing that anyone could tell of the new arrival before he was knocked to the floor by a blur of blond hair and bronze dagger. When the world refocused, Annabeth was sat on his chest with her knife pressed against his throat.

"You better start talking… now!" She barked at him, but the grin never left his faces.

"About what Annie?"

"Oh, I don't know," Her voice shook with sarcasm and badly suppressed rage, "How about why you were hugging her" She jerked the knife at Reyna "Or perhaps why you disappeared for 8 months without a word?"

For the first time, the grin left Percy's face as he waited for Annabeth to finish her rant, when she did, he put his arms around her and hugged her close, being very careful of the knife mind you. "I missed you wise girl!"

At this, the girl softened a little, but there was still an edge to her voice as she pressed him, "Explain!"

He sighed, "Well, first of all, neither of those were my fault! Secondly, You can blame the queen for the disappearing act, as well as Aphrodite for the hug, she shoved me into Reyna just before Hermes sent us here!"

Annabeth sat back and growled, staring intently into his face, but apparently, she couldn't decide what to do as she turned to look at the sun god. Apollo just shrugged.

"The boy's telling the truth!"

With this, the last of the girls anger drained from her and they both got to their feet clutching each other as though they were afraid of being pulled apart. Finally she snuggled closer to him and sighed, "Don't you _ever _do that to me again seaweed brain!"

They stood like that for a little while, until Percy began to feel uncomfortable, someone was staring at him. When he turned, he found that only four of the faces around him seemed to be unreasonable, 1 mortal, 3 immortal, the most uncomfortable of which belonged to Aphrodite herself who was grinning in a self satisfied way. The others, though not as easy to ignore, were less frightening.

First of all, was Reyna, who was looking a little sulky, slouched into her chair and everything. The next was Poseidon who simply looked… well, like he had been slapped in the face with a wet fish I suppose. And finally, there was Athena. Funnily enough, even though this was the only stare that was malicious in anyway, Percy found it easiest to ignore, he was used to people wanting to kill him, especially this one particular goddess.

The silence would probably have carried on like this for a long while, but Dionysus began to snore, brining everyone back to reality. Percy looked at where Clarisse was sitting with the book in her hands and laughed.

"Guess it's my turn then! The name's Percy Jackson, son of Poseidon." With that, he went over and took his seat, Annabeth perching on his knee, and he began to read.

**I Plunge to my Death**

"Ow Annie, I can't read if you're trying to strangle me!"

"Oh, sorry!" unfortunately, she didn't sound sorry at all and Percy had to wait for the laughter to die down before he could continue.

**We spent two days on the Amtrak train, heading west through hills, over rivers, past amber waves of grain.**

**We weren't attacked once, but I didn't relax.**

"Wow, you can ride a train for two days, but I can't even go out and get a happy meal?" Nico sulked. Percy just grinned.

"I'm just that awesome!"

"And modest!" Annabeth added with a kiss.

"Yup, that too!"

**I felt that we were traveling around in a display case, being watched from above and maybe from below, that something was waiting for the right opportunity.**

Poseidon sighed, "Unfortunately, that is probably true!"

Percy peered around his girlfriend and grinned at him, "Hey dad!"

"Hi Percy."

**I tried to keep a low profile because my name and picture were splattered over the front pages of several East Coast newspapers. The**_**Trenton Register-News **_**showed a photo taken by a tourist as I got off the Greyhound bus. I had a wild look in my eyes. My sword was a metallic blur in my hands. It might've been a baseball bat or a lacrosse stick.**

**The picture's caption read:**

_**Twelve-year-old Percy Jackson, wanted for questioning in the Long Island disappearance of his mother two weeks ago, is shown here fleeing from the bus where he accosted several elderly female passengers.**_

"Really, _that's _what they saw? Mortals are idiots!" Connor laughed.

"Hey!"

"Sorry Rachel."

_**The bus exploded on an east New Jersey roadside shortly after Jackson fled the scene. Based on eyewitness accounts, police believe the boy may be traveling with two teenage accomplices. His stepfather, Gabe Ugliano, has offered a cash reward for information leading to his capture.**_

"That man is absolutely abhorrent!" Artemis hissed.

"Want me to go and… talk to him uncle?" Ares asked eagerly.

Percy snickered darkly at this as he and Annabeth shared a look. "No need Lord Ares, no need!"

**"Don't worry," Annabeth told me. "Mortal police could never find us." But she didn't sound so sure.**

**The rest of the day I spent alternately pacing the length of the train (because I had a really hard time sitting still) or looking out the windows**.

**Once, I spotted a family of centaurs galloping across a wheat field, bows at the ready, as they hunted lunch.**

**The little boy centaur, who was the size of a second-grader on a pony, caught my eye and waved. I looked around the passenger car, but nobody else had noticed. The adult riders all had their faces buried in laptop computers or magazines.**

**Another time, toward evening, I saw something huge moving through the woods. I could've sworn it was a lion, except that lions don't live wild in America, and this thing was the size of a Hummer.**

"What? Why didn't you point it out?" Annabeth pouted at him. He just grinned apologetically before sticking his tongue out.

"Sorry, but you look so cute when you're asleep!"

**Its fur glinted gold in the evening light. Then it leaped through the trees and was gone.**

"I really want to see that sometime!" Annabeth sighed. Thalia and Percy shared a look and shivered before she answered.

"No you don't Annie, you really don't!"

**Our reward money for returning Gladiola the poodle had only been enough to purchase tickets as far as Denver. We couldn't get berths in the sleeper car, so we dozed in our seats. My neck got stiff. I tried not to drool in my sleep, since Annabeth was sitting right next to me.**

"You failed!" Annabeth grinned, kissing him.

"Damn it!"

"Percy! Mind you're language!"

"Sorry dad."

**Grover kept snoring and bleating and waking me up.**

**Once, he shuffled around and his fake foot fell off. Annabeth and I had to stick it back on before any of the other passengers noticed.**

"Stupi…. THALIA!"

Percy cocked his eyebrow at his cousin who was giggling hysterically in her chair, before he leaned across to Nico.

"Remind me never to fight with her again!"

"only if you do the same for me!"

**"So," Annabeth asked me, once we'd gotten Grover's sneaker readjusted. "Who wants your help?"**

**"What do you mean?"**

**"When you were asleep just now, you mumbled, 'I won't help you.' Who were you dreaming about?"**

**I was reluctant to say anything. It was the second time I'd dreamed about the evil voice from the pit.**

**But it bothered me so much I finally told her.**

"I still can't believe you kept that from me!"

"Sorry!"

**Annabeth was quiet for a long time. "That doesn't sound like Hades. He always appears on a black throne, and he never laughs."**

"Thank you child… but I want to inform you that I _do _laugh!" Hades shot at her, but he was stopped by his wife.

"Really? I've never seen you laugh properly before!"

"Hey, I laugh plenty!"

"Brother, you're sounding like a little kid again!" Hera smirked, before a skeletal hand came up and secured her wrist to her throne. As much as he liked to see his aunt suffering, Percy decided that now it would be good for him to continue reading.

**"He offered my mother in trade. Who else could do that?"**

**"I guess ... if he meant, 'Help me rise from the Underworld.' If he wants war with the Olympians. But why ask you to bring him the master bolt if he already has it?"**

"But I dooooon't!" Wailed Hades sulking in his throne.

Travis leaned over to Katie and whispered in her ear "Who knew the king of the dead was such a little kid!" Setting the two of them snickering over the arms of their chairs.

**I shook my head, wishing I knew the answer. I thought about what Grover had told me, that the Furies on the bus seemed to have been looking for something.**

_**Where is it? Where?**_

**Maybe Grover sensed my emotions. He snorted in his sleep, muttered something about vegetables, and turned his head.**

All the demigods laughed at this. "Typical Grover!" Nico cheered.

Demeter sniffed, "He should be dreaming of cereal!"

**Annabeth readjusted his cap so it covered his horns. "Percy, you can't barter with Hades. You know that, right? He's deceitful, heartless, and greedy.**

"HEY!"

"Sorry, Lord Hades." Annabeth looked at the ground trying to look contrite, but failing miserably because Percy was tickling her side with his free hand.

**I don't care if his Kindly Ones weren't as aggressive this time—"**

**"This time?" I asked. "You mean you've run into them before?"**

**Her hand crept up to her necklace. She fingered a glazed white bead painted with the image of a pine tree, one of her clay end-of-summer tokens. "Let's just say I've got no love for the Lord of the Dead. You can't be tempted to make a deal for your mom."**

**"What would you do if it was your dad?"**

**"That's easy," she said. "I'd leave him to rot."**

"ANNABETH WE REALLY NEED TO TALK LATE!"

The girl sighed, "Yes mother."

**"You're not serious?"**

**Annabeth's gray eyes fixed on me. She wore the same expression she'd worn in the woods at camp, the moment she drew her sword against the hellhound. "My dad's resented me since the day I was born, Percy," she said. "He never wanted a baby. When he got me, he asked Athena to take me back and raise me on Olympus because he was too busy with his work. She wasn't happy about that. She told him heroes had to be raised by their mortal parent."**

"He just didn't think that he was ready for a child!" Athena defended her ex-lover. Her daughter simply rolled her eyes.

"Sure sure."

**"But how ... I mean, I guess you weren't born in a hospital..."**

**"I appeared on my father's doorstep, in a golden cradle, carried down from Olympus by Zephyr the West Wind. You'd think my dad would remember that as a miracle, right? Like, maybe he'd take some digital photos or something. But he always talked about my arrival as if it were the most inconvenient thing that had ever happened to him. When I was five he got married and totally forgot about Athena. He got a 'regular' mortal wife, and had two 'regular' mortal kids, and tried to pretend I didn't exist."**

"Fredrick just… okay, maybe I have to have a few words with him." Athena conceded grudgingly.

**I stared out the train window. The lights of a sleeping town were drifting by. I wanted to make Annabeth feel better, but I didn't know how.**

**"My mom married a really awful guy," I told her. "Grover said she did it to protect me, to hide me in the scent of a human family. Maybe that's what your dad was thinking."**

**Annabeth kept worrying at her necklace. She was pinching the gold college ring that hung with the beads. It occurred to me that the ring must be her father's. I wondered why she wore it if she hated him so much.**

**"He doesn't care about me," she said. "His wife—my stepmom—treated me like a freak. She wouldn't let me play with her children. My dad went along with her. Whenever something dangerous happened—you know, something with monsters—they would both look at me resentfully, like, 'How dare you put our family at risk.' Finally, I took the hint. I wasn't wanted. I ran away."**

Athena shifted in her chair guiltily, thinking about how she would have to help her daughter in the future, but also seething about the same girl's position right now. Why was she clinging to the sea rat?

**"How old were you?"**

**"Same age as when I started camp. Seven."**

Leo and Piper looked at Annabeth with new found respect at this, making her blush bright scarlet and hide her face in Percy's shirt.

**"But ... you couldn't have gotten all the way to Half-Blood Hill by yourself."**

**"Not alone, no. Athena watched over me, guided me toward help. I made a couple of unexpected friends who took care of me, for a short time, anyway."**

"Thanks for that." She removed her head from the silk long enough to shoot a look at Thalia.

"Any time!"

**I wanted to ask what happened, but Annabeth seemed lost in sad memories. So I listened to the sound of Grover snoring and gazed out the train windows as the dark fields of Ohio raced by.**

**Toward the end of our second day on the train, June 13, eight days before the summer solstice, we passed through some golden hills and over the Mississippi River into St. Louis. Annabeth craned her neck to see the Gateway Arch, which looked to me like a huge shopping bag handle stuck on the city.**

"CRETIN!" Athena screamed at the same time Connor and Travis cheered.

"Genius!"

Nico nodded his head thoughtfully, "You know, I can see it!"

Athena glared, "The whole lot of you are idiots!"

**"I want to do that," she sighed.**

**"What?" I asked.**

**"Build something like that. You ever see the Parthenon, Percy?"**

"Nope." Percy answered, Popping the p.

**"Only in pictures."**

**"Someday, I'm going to see it in person. I'm going to build the greatest monument to the gods, ever. Something that'll last a thousand years."**

"And you did!" He whispered in her ear before kissing her again. It took a series of puking noises (directed mainly by the Stoll brothers and Nico) to get them to separate again for Percy to carry on reading.

**I laughed. "You? An architect?"**

Annabeth bashed him on the head playfully, "What's that supposed to mean?" Her boyfriend just grinned and carried on reading.

**I don't know why, but I found it funny. Just the idea of Annabeth trying to sit quietly and draw all day.**

She huffed, "Fine, I'll let you have that one!"

**Her cheeks flushed. "Yes, an architect. Athena expects her children to create things, not just tear them down, like a certain god of earthquakes I could mention."**

"Hey, I do build some things!" Poseidon stated petulantly, but everyone just rolled their eyes and ignored him, including his own son. Needing an ally, he went over to his sister and pulled the baby form of his son into his arms.

**I watched the churning brown water of the Mississippi below.**

**"Sorry," Annabeth said. "That was mean."**

"Yes, yes it was!" Poseidon sniffed, regaining his seat while cuddling a sleeping toddler in his arms.

**"Can't we work together a little?" I pleaded. "I mean, didn't Athena and Poseidon ever cooperate?"**

Athena and Poseidon scowled at each other before the former sighed and muttered "Once."

**Annabeth had to think about it. "I guess ... the chariot," she said tentatively. "My mom invented it, but Poseidon created horses out of the crests of waves. So they had to work together to make it complete."**

**"Then we can cooperate, too. Right?"**

"_No!" _Athena glared at where the two of them sat, locked in each other's arms, Annabeth just sighed.

"My choice, not yours mom!"

**We rode into the city, Annabeth watching as the Arch disappeared behind a hotel.**

**"I suppose," she said at last.**

**We pulled into the Amtrak station downtown. The intercom told us we'd have a three-hour layover before departing for Denver.**

**Grover stretched. Before he was even fully awake, he said, "Food."**

**"Come on, goat boy," Annabeth said. "Sightseeing."**

**"Sightseeing?"**

**"The Gateway Arch," she said. "This may be my only chance to ride to the top. Are you coming or not?"**

**Grover and I exchanged looks.**

**I wanted to say no, but I figured that if Annabeth was going, we couldn't very well let her go alone.**

"Good, never separate in enemy territory!" Ares nodded.

Hephaestus stroked his beard thoughtfully, "You know… the gate way arch has one of the most detailed support systems that…"

Attempting to save everyone from the boring lecture, Percy carried on reading.

**Grover shrugged. "As long as there's a snack bar without monsters."**

**The Arch was about a mile from the train station. Late in the day the lines to get in weren't that long. We threaded our way through the underground museum, looking at covered wagons and other junk from the 1800s. It wasn't all that thrilling, but Annabeth kept telling us interesting facts about how the Arch was built, and Grover kept passing me jelly beans, so I was okay.**

"Really Percy?" Annabeth raised her eyebrow at him, he just grinned then smirked at Hermes and Apollo who were giving him a thumbs up behind her back.

**I kept looking around, though, at the other people in line. "You smell anything?" I murmured to Grover.**

**He took his nose out of the jelly-bean bag long enough to sniff. "Underground," he said distastefully. "Underground air always smells like monsters. Probably doesn't mean anything."**

"Stu… THALIA, STOP IT!"

"Well, stop badmouthing my friend then dad!"

**But something felt wrong to me. I had a feeling we shouldn't be here.**

**"Guys," I said. "You know the gods' symbols of power?"**

**Annabeth had been in the middle of reading about the construction equipment used to build the Arch, but she looked over. "Yeah?"**

**"Well, Hade—"**

**Grover cleared his throat. "We're in a public place... You mean, our friend downstairs?"**

At this, everyone except Hades and Artemis cracked up laughing. While Hades scowled in his corner, Apollo wiped a tear from his eye, "Man, I love that satyr!"

Artemis frowned, "I don't get it!" This of course set her twin brother off again.

"I didn't think you would some how!"

**"Um, right," I said. "Our friend**_**way **_**downstairs. Doesn't he have a hat like Annabeth's?"**

"No, it's _a lot _more powerful!" Hades' face now glowed with pride while Jason poked Nico in the ribs,

"It always amazes me how quickly his mood changes!" The latter just rolled his eyes.

"Trust me, you have _no _idea!"

**"You mean the Helm of Darkness," Annabeth said. "Yeah, that's his symbol of power. I saw it next to his seat during the winter solstice council meeting."**

**"He was there?" I asked.**

**She nodded. "It's the only time he's allowed to visit Olympus—the darkest day of the year. But his helm is a lot more powerful than my invisibility hat, if what I've heard is true..."**

**"It allows him to become darkness," Grover confirmed. "He can melt into shadow or pass through walls. He can't be touched, or seen, or heard. And he can radiate fear so intense it can drive you insane or stop your heart. Why do you think all rational creatures fear the dark?"**

**"But then ... how do we know he's not here right now, watching us?" I asked.**

"Yes, because I have nothing better to do with my time than stalk a couple of demigods!" He rolled his eyes in exasperation. Hermes just sighed.

"Why don't you try doing my job then Uncle H?"

"No thank you!"

**Annabeth and Grover exchanged looks.**

**"We don't," Grover said.**

**"Thanks, that makes me feel a lot better," I said. "Got any blue jelly beans left?"**

**I'd almost mastered my jumpy nerves when I saw the tiny little elevator car we were going to ride to the top of the Arch, and I knew I was in trouble. I hate confined places. They make me nuts.**

**We got shoehorned into the car with this big fat lady and her dog, a Chihuahua with a rhinestone collar. I figured maybe the dog was a seeing-eye Chihuahua, because none of the guards said a word about it.**

**We started going up, inside the Arch. I'd never been in an elevator that went in a curve, and my stomach wasn't too happy about it.**

**"No parents?" the fat lady asked us.**

"Lie." Athena told the children simply, she still wasn't happy with them, but she didn't like the sound of this situation. She also seemed to have forgotten that this was all in the past for them.

**She had beady eyes; pointy, coffee-stained teeth; a floppy denim hat, and a denim dress that bulged so much, she looked like a blue-jean blimp.**

**"They're below," Annabeth told her. "Scared of heights."**

Thalia had a sudden thought and turned very pale, if every one of their adventures were in these books, that meant that everyone was going to find out her secret…

**"Oh, the poor darlings."**

**The Chihuahua growled. The woman said, "Now, now, Sonny. Behave." The dog had beady eyes like its owner, intelligent and vicious.**

**I said, "Sonny. Is that his name?"**

**"No," the lady told me.**

Hera grinned and Zeus winced, shifting further away from his brother, they knew where this was going!

**She smiled, as if that cleared everything up.**

**At the top of the Arch, the observation deck reminded me of a tin can with carpeting. Rows of tiny windows looked out over the city on one side and the river on the other. The view was okay, but if there's anything I like less than a confined space, it's a confined space six hundred feet in the air. I was ready to go pretty quick.**

"You're lucky I don't blast you off of there!" Zeus warned the boy across from him who just grinned and whispered to the other demigods.

"Doesn't he mean, _he's _lucky?" Of course, this set them all off again.

**Annabeth kept talking about structural supports, and how she would've made the windows bigger, and designed a see-through floor.**

Thalia winced, this seemed like torture.

**She probably could've stayed up there for hours, but luckily for me the park ranger announced that the observation deck would be closing in a few minutes.**

**I steered Grover and Annabeth toward the exit, loaded them into the elevator, and I was about to get in myself when I realized there were already two other tourists inside. No room for me.**

**The park ranger said, "Next car, sir."**

**"We'll get out," Annabeth said. "We'll wait with you."**

**But that was going to mess everybody up and take even more time, so I said, "Naw, it's okay. I'll see you guys at the bottom."**

"I knew we never should have left you there alone." Annabeth sighed.

**Grover and Annabeth both looked nervous, but they let the elevator door slide shut. Their car disappeared down the ramp.**

**Now the only people left on the observation deck were me, a little boy with his parents, the park ranger, and the fat lady with her Chihuahua.**

**I smiled uneasily at the fat lady. She smiled back, her forked tongue flickering between her teeth.**

The silence in the room was broken by a deep growl coming from Poseidon, "You sent _Echidna _after my son!" However, as much as he would have loved to have attacked his little brother, the sea god was aware of his two year old son in his arms. Zeus was safe for now.

**Wait a minute.**

**Forked tongue?**

"Took you a while to figure it out man!" Travis joked with a mock punch to Percy's shoulder.

**Before I could decide if I'd really seen that, her Chihuahua jumped down and started yapping at me.**

**"Now, now, Sonny," the lady said. "Does this look like a good time? We have all these nice people here."**

**"Doggie!" said the little boy. "Look, a doggie!"**

**His parents pulled him back.**

"Is he clear sighted?" Rachel asked, intrigued. Apollo just shook his head.

"Naw, but he would have to be pretty blind to miss this."

**The Chihuahua bared his teeth at me, foam dripping from his black lips.**

**"Well, son," the fat lady sighed. "If you insist."**

**Ice started forming in my stomach. "Urn, did you just call that Chihuahua your son?"**

_**"Chimera, **_**dear," the fat lady corrected. "Not a Chihuahua. It's an easy mistake to make."**

"FOR CRYING OUT LOUD!" Poseidon sent a death glare at his brother, "A chimera _too?" _

**She rolled up her denim sleeves, revealing that the skin of her arms was scaly and green. When she smiled, I saw that her teeth were fangs. The pupils of her eyes were sideways slits, like a reptile's.**

**The Chihuahua barked louder, and with each bark, it grew. First to the size of a Doberman, then to a lion. The bark became a roar.**

**The little boy screamed. His parents pulled him back toward the exit, straight into the park ranger, who stood, paralyzed, gaping at the monster.**

**The Chimera was now so tall it's back rubbed against the roof. It had the head of a lion with a blood-caked mane, the body and hooves of a giant goat, and a serpent for a tail, a ten-foot-long diamondback growing right out of its shaggy behind. The rhinestone dog collar still hung around its neck, and the plate-sized dog tag was now easy to read: CHIMERA—RABID, FIRE-BREATHING, POISONOUS—IF FOUND, PLEASE CALL TARTARUS—EXT. 954.**

Everyone burst out laughing despite the situation, everyone except Nico, however, when Connor asked him why, he just scowled at the floor.

"Dad made me wear one of those once!" Again, this cracked everyone else up straight away.

**I realized I hadn't even uncapped my sword. My hands were numb. I was ten feet away from the Chimera's bloody maw, and I knew that as soon as I moved, the creature would lunge.**

**The snake lady made a hissing noise that might've been laughter. "Be honored, Percy Jackson. Lord Zeus rarely allows me to test a hero with one of my brood. For I am the Mother of Monsters, the terrible Echidna!"**

**I stared at her. All I could think to say was: "Isn't that a kind of anteater?"**

"Not the right thing to say Seaweed brain!" Annabeth laughed, slapping Percy round the back of his head.

"Well, it's a bit late now!" He joked along with her.

**She howled, her reptilian face turning brown and green with rage. "I hate it when people say that! I hate Australia! Naming that ridiculous animal after me. For that, Percy Jackson, my son shall destroy you!"**

Everyone could hear Poseidon's gasp and burry his face in the hair of the sleeping, baby form of his son, causing Percy to laugh.

"I'm right here dad!"

"Yes, right!" The gods voice came out at a much higher pitch than intended and once again the room filled with laughter.

**The Chimera charged, its lion teeth gnashing. I managed to leap aside and dodge the bite.**

**I ended up next to the family and the park ranger, who were all screaming now, trying to pry open the emergency exit doors.**

**I couldn't let them get hurt.**

"idiot!" Annabeth pouted.

**I uncapped my sword, ran to the other side of the deck, and yelled, "Hey, Chihuahua!" The Chimera turned faster than I would've thought possible.**

**Before I could swing my sword, it opened its mouth, emitting a stench like the world's largest barbecue pit, and shot a column of flame straight at me.**

"That sounds like fun!" Leo cheered, looking completely sincere. A little shocked, Percy turned to Annabeth.

"Is he for real?"

"Sadly… yes!"

**I dove through the explosion. The carpet burst into flames; the heat was so intense, it nearly seared off my eye brows.**

**Where I had been standing a moment before was a ragged hole in the side of the Arch, with melted metal steaming around the edges.**

**Great, I thought. We just blow torched a national monument.**

"Well that's going to go down well with the mortals." Dionysus droned, sounding completely bored, but at least he was awake now.

**Riptide was now a shining bronze blade in my hands, and as the Chimera turned, I slashed at its neck.**

"Idiot!" Athena screeched at the same time as her daughter, and for once, Percy agreed with them.

"Yeah, it was a pretty stupid move."

**That was my fatal mistake. The blade sparked harmlessly off the dog collar. I tried to regain my balance, but I was so worried about defending myself against the fiery lion's mouth, I completely forgot about the serpent tail until it whipped around and sank its fangs into my calf.**

Ares turned to glare at Percy, "Can someone please tell me why you are still alive?"

Percy grinned back at him, "I'm just lucky that way!"

**My whole leg was on fire. I tried to jab Riptide into the Chimera's mouth, but the serpent tail wrapped around my ankles and pulled me off balance, and my blade flew out of my hand, spinning out of the hole in the Arch and down toward the Mississippi River.**

**I managed to get to my feet, but I knew I had lost.**

**I was weaponless. I could feel deadly poison racing up to my chest. I remembered Chiron saying that Anaklusmos would always return to me, but there was no pen in my pocket.**

**Maybe it had fallen too far away. Maybe it only returned when it was in pen form. I didn't know, and I wasn't going to live long enough to figure it out.**

"If he dies brother, so help me I will…"

"Dad, I'm right here."

"Oh yeah."

**I backed into the hole in the wall. The Chimera advanced, growling, smoke curling from its lips. The snake lady, Echidna, cackled. "They don't make heroes like they used to, eh, son?"**

**The monster growled. It seemed in no hurry to finish me off now that I was beaten.**

**I glanced at the park ranger and the family. The little boy was hiding behind his father's legs. I had to protect these people. I couldn't just ... die.**

"Noble to the end." Katie rolled her eyes.

**I tried to think, but my whole body was on fire. My head felt dizzy. I had no sword. I was facing a massive, fire-breathing monster and its mother. And I was scared.**

**There was no place else to go, so I stepped to the edge of the hole. Far, far below, the river glittered.**

**If I died, would the monsters go away? Would they leave the humans alone?**

**"If you are the son of Poseidon," Echidna hissed, "you would not fear water. Jump, Percy Jackson. Show me that water will not harm you. Jump and retrieve your sword. Prove your bloodline."**

"Oh." Poseidon's eyes grew wide as he understood, "Yes, jump!" Everyone else looked at him like he had gone insane but Percy nodded.

"Sure thing dad."

**Yeah, right, I thought. I'd read somewhere that jumping into water from a couple of stories up was like jumping onto solid asphalt. From here, I'd splatter on impact.**

**The Chimera's mouth glowed red, heating up for another blast.**

**"You have no faith," Echidna told me. "You do not trust the gods. I cannot blame you, little coward. Better you die now. The gods are faithless. The poison is in your heart."**

Artemis scowled. "We really need to have a few words with her!"

**She was right: I was dying. I could feel my breath slowing down. Nobody could save me, not even the gods.**

**I backed up and looked down at the water. I remembered the warm glow of my father's smile when I was a baby. He must have seen me. He must have visited me when I was in my cradle.**

"I did…" Poseidon sighed happily at the memory while Zeus glared at him.

**I remembered the swirling green trident that had appeared above my head the night of capture the flag, when Poseidon had claimed me as his son.**

**But this wasn't the sea. This was the Mississippi, dead center of the USA. There was no Sea god here.**

"Ummm, I'm pretty sure it will listen to me..." Poseidon mused.

**"Die, faithless one," Echidna rasped, and the Chimera sent a column of flame toward my face.**

**"Father, help me," I prayed.**

**I turned and jumped. My clothes on fire, poison coursing through my veins, I plummeted toward the river**

"And on that happy not, that's the end of the chapter." Percy cheered. "Who's going to read next?"

At this, Reyna stood from her chair where she had been sitting so quietly that most had forgotten her presence. "I will."

"Okay." Percy grinned and tossed the book over to her before he went back to making goo goo eyes at Annabeth.

Reyna turned, bowed to the gods, and said "My name is Reyna, daughter of Bellona."

And with that, she returned to her seat and read "**I become a known fugitive**."


	16. I Become a Know Fugitive

"**I Become a Know Fugitive,"**Reyna began, but she was cut off pretty quickly by an indignant yell from Travis.

"Hey! I've been trying to do that for years and he does that in a week!"

"Travis?"

"Yes Annabeth?"

"Shut up!"

**I'd love to tell you I had some deep revelation on my way down, that I came to terms with my own mortality, laughed in the face of death, etcetera.**

Everyone laughed at this while Annabeth snuggled closer to Percy,

"If you had, you would have been nuts seaweed brain!"

**The truth? My only thought was: Aaaagggghhhhh!**

Nico cracked up again and leaned over to mock punch his cousins arm, "I really love you sound effects Perce!"

To this, the other boy just grinned.

**The river raced toward me at the speed****of a truck. Wind ripped the breath from my lungs. Steeples and skyscrapers and bridges tumbled in and out of my vision.**

**And then:**_**Flaaa-boooom!**_

**A whiteout of bubbles. I sank through the murk, sure that I was about to end up embedded in a hundred feet of mud and lost forever.**

"Yeah, like that's going to happen!" Dionysus sighed, sounding rather disappointed, until he received a shower for his troubles.

**But my impact with the water hadn't hurt.**

It looked as though the wine god was going to say something else, but one look from his uncle soon silenced him, that didn't work on Thalia though who cheered quickly, stating.

"The Moron lives!"

Of course, this made everyone crack up and Reyna had to wait for the room to quiet again before she could continue reading.

**I was falling slowly now, bubbles trickling up through my fingers. I settled on the river bottom soundlessly. A catfish the size of my stepfather**

Apollo whistled, "Now _that _is a big catfish!"

**lurched away into the gloom. Clouds of silt and disgusting garbage—beer bottles, old shoes, plastic bags—swirled up all around me.**

Aphrodite shuddered. "Poseidon, you really need to clean those things!"

The sea god, who had been incredibly focused on the sleeping boy in his arms looked up a little dazed. "What?"

Percy sighed, "She wants you to clean the rivers dad!"

"Are they really that bad?"

The response from all the demigods was so forceful that Poseidon actually flinched. For the first time in centuries, Romans and Greeks spoke as one voice and shouted "YES!" So loud that even the people on the streets below could hear them.

"Okay, Okay, no need to shout."

**At that point, I realized a few things: first, I had not been flattened into a pancake. I had not been barbecued. I couldn't even feel the Chimera poison boiling in my veins anymore. I was alive, which was good.**

"Yes, _very_ good." Annabeth whispered into his ear, sighing slightly. Why was it that every time she left him alone, he got into a fight for his life?

**Second realization: I wasn't wet. I mean, I could feel the coolness of the water. I could see where the fire on my clothes had been quenched. But when I touched my own shirt, it felt perfectly dry.**

"No fair!" Thalia complained while Nico nodded in the background, "Why does he get all the cool powers?"

"Says the girl who keeps sending 3000 volts of electricity thorough her dad and the boy who can go practically anywhere in the world just by stepping into a shadow?" Percy countered, but he was grinning, he loved his powers.

**I looked at the garbage floating by and snatched an old cigarette lighter.**

"Oh gods Percy, what are you planning now?" Will groaned.

**I flicked the lighter. It sparked. A tiny flame appeared, right there at the bottom of the Mississippi.**

Everyone in the room looked at Percy with a shocked expression.

"Now _that _was cool!" Connor grinned, a strange light in his eyes while Leo just pouted.

"I can't even do that!"

"And why would you be able to do that son of Hephaestus?" Athena asked shrewdly, all the comments that the boy had made regarding fire starting to come together in her head.

"Oh, no reason." The wisdom goddess was not happy with that response, but she could wait to have her suspicions confirmed.

**No way, I thought.**

"I wish I could do that." Hermes sighed longingly.

"What for?" No one liked the look in the young gods eyes, Poseidon in particular was fearful of whatever his nephew was planning.

"Oh, no reason Uncle P, no reason."

**I grabbed a soggy hamburger wrapper out of the current and immediately the paper turned dry.**

**I lit it with no problem. As soon as I let it go, the flames sputtered out. The wrapper turned back into a slimy rag. Weird.**

**But the strangest thought occurred to me only last: I was breathing. I was underwater, and I was breathing normally.**

"Yes, because breathing isn't important is it seaweed brain? You can easily forget about that can't you?" Annabeth chided, but the anger in her voice was just for show, she thought that the childish side of Percy was very endearing, especially with the apologetic pout he was pulling now…

**I stood up, thigh-deep in mud. My legs felt shaky. My hands trembled. I should've been dead. The fact that I wasn't seemed like ... well, a miracle. I imagined a woman's voice, a voice that sounded a bit like my mother:**_**Percy, what do you say?**_

At this, everyone cracked up laughing again while Percy turned a deep shade of crimson.

**"Um ... thanks." Underwater, I sounded like I did on recordings, like a much older kid. "Thank you ... Father."**

Again everyone laughed and Poseidon smiled across the room, "Well, you're welcome, son."

**No response. Just the dark drift of garbage downriver, the enormous catfish gliding by, the flash of sunset on the water's surface far above, turning everything the color of butterscotch.**

**Why had Poseidon saved me?**

"Yes, why did you save the little brat Uncle?" Again, Dionysus was soaked, but this time, the water seemed to have hit him harder that before. After a second both Poseidon and his teenage son started roaring with laughter.

Annabeth sighed, shaking her head and trying not to smile. _Great minds _she thought _Great minds._

**The more I thought about it, the more ashamed I felt. So I'd gotten lucky a few times before. Against a thing like the Chimera, I had never stood a chance.**

"Nope!" Zeus sighed happily before he hissed again. "Thalia, I _told _you to stop doing that!"

"Well, stop insulting my friends then!"

**Those poor people in the Arch were probably toast. I couldn't protect them. I was no hero. Maybe I should just stay down here with the catfish, join the bottom feeders.**

"Yes, because that would solve everything." Artemis sighed, "Idiot boy!"

Percy leaned across to Nico and whispered in his ear, "You know, I really regret taking her place under the sky now!" At this, both of them cracked up and even Annabeth had to bite her lip.

_**Fump-fump-fump.**_**A riverboat's paddlewheel churned above me, swirling the silt around.**

**There, not five feet in front of me, was my sword, its gleaming bronze hilt sticking up in the mud.**

**I heard that woman's voice again:**_**Percy, take the sword. Your father believes in you.**_

"yes, yes I do!"

"Thanks dad."

"No problem."

**This time, I knew the voice wasn't in my head. I wasn't imagining it. Her words seemed to come from everywhere, rippling through the water like dolphin sonar.**

**"Where are you?" I called aloud.**

**Then, through the gloom, I saw her—a woman the color of the water, a ghost in the current, floating just above the sword. She had long billowing hair, and her eyes, barely visible, were green like mine.**

**A lump formed in my throat. I said, "Mom?"**

"Oh, the poor child, maybe he doesn't need so much Cereal after all!" Demeter cooed while Percy looked at Annabeth in confusion.

"Cereal?"

"Just don't comment, it makes her worse."

_**No, child, only a messenger, though your mother's fate is not as hopeless as you believe. Go to the beach in Santa Monica.**_

**"What?"**

_**It is your father's will. Before you descend into the Underworld, you must go to Santa Monica. Please, Percy, I cannot stay long. The river here is too foul for my presence.**_

Poseidon sighed "I suppose I better clean them." At this, all the mortals in the room cheered loudly, making the Olympians flinch.

**"But ..." I was sure this woman was my mother,**

"Momma's boy!" Ares snickered before he got soaked from head to toe, "Poseidon!"

"Wasn't me Ares, though I was going to."

All eyes turned to Percy who just shrugged looking confused, but then the high pitched giggling coming from Poseidon's throne let everyone know who was to blame.

"No mean to Mommy, no mean to Mommy!" Baby Percy cheered happily, clapping his hands, making all the Olympians (except, of course, for Ares) burst out laughing again that the war god had been bested by a two year old. Percy however, just hid his face in his girlfriends hair.

**or a vision of her, anyway. "Who—how did you—"**

**There was so much I wanted to ask, the words jammed up in my throat.**

_**I cannot stay, brave one,**___**the woman said. She reached out, and I felt the current brush my face like a caress.**

Annabeth turned to glare at him, taking away his hiding place so that everyone could see his flaming cheeks. Before however, she could reach for her knife, Percy hugged her close.

"I promise I was not flirting with the nyad, I was 12!"

"Okay, you're forgiven!"

When they kissed, all the windows that had stayed intact through Olympus shattered from the pitch of Aphrodite's scream, she was loving every minute of Percabeth.

_**You must go to Santa Monica! And, Percy, do not trust the gifts...**_

"What gifts?" Hera asked the assembled crowed, not realizing that only a handful of the demigods actually knew the answer. Athena however, noticed that, at the exact same second, Annabeth, Percy and Thalia turned to glare at her brother Ares.

**Her voice faded.**

**"Gifts?" I asked. "What gifts? Wait!"**

**She made one more attempt to speak, but the sound was gone. Her image melted away. If it was my mother, I had lost her again.**

**I felt like drowning myself. The only problem: I was immune to drowning.**

"You've gotta love your children uncle P, they are all so bright and happy." Apollo snickered.

_**Your father believes in you,**___**she had said.**

**She'd also called me brave ... unless she was talking to the catfish.**

"Definitely the catfish!" Thalia called to him over yet another round of laughter that swelled within the room.

**I waded toward Riptide and grabbed it by the hilt. The Chimera might still be up there with its snaky, fat mother, waiting to finish me off. At the very least, the mortal police would be arriving, trying to figure out who had blown a hole in the Arch. If they found me, they'd have some questions.**

**I capped my sword, stuck the ballpoint pen in my pocket. "Thank you, Father," I said again to the dark water.**

**Then I kicked up through the muck and swam for the surface.**

**I came ashore next to a floating McDonald's.**

Hermes and Apollo began drooling at the thought of such greasy food, but they didn't dare summon any as Demeter would probably change it again.

**A block away, every emergency vehicle in St. Louis was surrounding the Arch. Police helicopters circled overhead. The crowd of onlookers reminded me of Times Square on New Year's Eve.**

**A little girl said, "Mama! That boy walked out of the river."**

**"That's nice, dear," her mother said, craning her neck to watch the ambulances.**

**"But he's dry!"**

**"That's nice, dear."**

"Ignorant mortal!" Hera sneered.

**A news lady was talking for the camera: "Probably not a terrorist attack, we're told, but it's still very early in the investigation. The damage, as you can see, is very serious. We're trying to get to some of the survivors, to question them about eyewitness reports of someone falling from the Arch."**

_**Survivors.**_**I felt a surge of relief. Maybe the park ranger and that family made it out safely. I hoped Annabeth and Grover were okay.**

"Yes Percy, because we were the ones that fell from the top of the arch." Annabeth rolled her eyes at him.

**I tried to push through the crowd to see what was going on inside the police line.**

**"... an adolescent boy," another reporter was saying. "Channel Five has learned that surveillance cameras show an adolescent boy going wild on the observation deck, somehow setting off this freak explosion. Hard to believe, John, but that's what we're hearing. Again, no confirmed fatalities …"**

**I backed away, trying to keep my head down. I had to go a long way around the police perimeter. Uniformed officers and news reporters were everywhere.**

**I'd almost lost hope of ever finding Annabeth and Grover when a familiar voice bleated, "Perrr-cy!"**

Zeus looked as though he was about to say something, but seeing the glares from his daughter and nephews, he quickly changed his mind and wisely kept his mouth shut, something that didn't fail to amuse the assembled Olympians.

**I turned and got tackled by Grover's bear hug—or goat hug. He said, "We thought you'd gone to Hades the hard way!"**

"Nope." Percy stated happily, popping the p.

**Annabeth stood behind him, trying to look angry, but even she seemed relieved to see me.**

"_Of Course_ I was happy seaweed brain, I thought that the quest was gonna be over cause you had gone and died on us!" Annabeth rolled her eyes and Percy pouted again.

"Is that the only reason?"

"Well, I might have been a _little bit _worried about you!" She amended.

"That's what I thought." He flashed her his crooked grin at this, but thankfully for the audience, he refrained from kissing her.

**"We can't leave you alone for five minutes! What happened?"**

**"I sort of fell."**

"yes, because that's something we all do every day!" Leo rolled his eyes.

"Like you can talk Leo, remember Festus?" Piper chided him.

"Oh yeeeaaaah!" Despite his happy exterior, everyone could see the underlying sadness he was hiding in his eyes.

**"Percy! Six hundred and thirty feet?"**

**Behind us, a cop shouted, "Gangway!" The crowd parted, and a couple of paramedics hustled out, rolling a woman on a stretcher. I recognized her immediately as the mother of the little boy who'd been on the observation deck. She was saying, "And then this huge dog, this huge fire-breathing Chihuahua—"**

**"Okay, ma'am," the paramedic said. "Just calm down. Your family is fine. The medication is starting to kick in."**

**"I'm not crazy! This boy jumped out of the hole and the monster disappeared." Then she saw me. "There he is! That's the boy!"**

**I turned quickly and pulled Annabeth and Grover after me. We disappeared into the crowd.**

**"What's going on?" Annabeth demanded. "Was she talking about the Chihuahua on the elevator?"**

**I told them the whole story of the Chimera, Echidna, my high-dive act, and the underwater lady's message.**

**"Whoa," said Grover. "We've got to get you to Santa Monica! You can't ignore a summons from your dad."**

"Well… you could, but then dad might see you a lot sooner than you thought!" Nico snickered into his hand.

"Shut up corpse breath."

"Shutting up Annie."

**Before Annabeth could respond, we passed another reporter doing a news break, and I almost froze in my tracks when he said, "Percy Jackson. That's right, Dan. Channel Twelve has learned that the boy who may have caused this explosion fits the description of a young man wanted by authorities for a serious New Jersey bus accident three days ago.**_**And**___**the boy is believed to be traveling west. For our viewers at home, here is a photo of Percy Jackson."**

"Again Perce…" Travis began

"… teach us your secrets!" Connor finished, making everyone laugh.

**We ducked around the news van and slipped into an alley.**

**"First things first," I told Grover. "We've got to get out of town!"**

**Somehow, we made it back to the Amtrak station without getting spotted. We got on board the train just before it pulled out for Denver. The train trundled west as darkness fell, police lights still pulsing against the St. Louis skyline behind us.**

"That's the end of the chapter." Reyna stated briskly before looking around confused. "Who do I pass this on to?"

That question confused everyone for a while, but before long, a large flash lit up the middle of the throne room once again, and another throne for a demigod appeared in the semi circle. This new chair had the glowing symbol of a lyre on it.

Unable to discern exactly who the new arrival would be, everyone stared into the middle of the room expectantly, waiting for the light to fade.


	17. A God Buys us Cheeseburgers

Everyone's gaze was on the place where the light had been a moment before, but there were only three in the room to actually recognize the new arrival.

Once the light and smoke had cleared, everyone had been able to see a teenage boy with stringy hair, Roman armor and really thin arms and legs, however, they were not what was so shocking as this probably describes half of the 12th legion. What really made him stand out, was the row of … beanie babies? That were tied around his waist, dangling from his belt.

"Octavian!"

Annabeth looked at her boyfriend in wonder, she accepted that this new arrival had to be Roman due to his attire, the fact that she had never seen him before and that both Reyna and Jason had recognized him on sight, but how did Percy know?

Seeing her look, Percy turned to smile at her and explained, "You know you guys got Jason? Well, camp Jupiter kinda got me."

The daughter of Athena looked as though she was going to say something else, but she was interrupted by Octavia who was glaring at the Greek demigods in disgust.

"So it's true, those greacus are still around then!"

Leo rolled his eyes, "Yup, really feeling the love dude!"

This flippant comment seemed to finally snap the gods out of their haze and they all started talking at once. They couldn't believe that there were more Romans coming to mix with the Greeks and they also couldn't believe that there had been an exchange of Jason and Percy, or whatever it was he was talking about.

Apparently, this was the first time that Octavian had noticed the gods because, as he turned, his face turned deathly pale and he immediately fell into a bow.

"Enough of the formalities boy, introduce yourself to us all!"

"Y-yes Lord Jupiter, I-I am Octavian, legacy of Apollo and Auger of New Rome!"

"Okay then brat, just get to your seat, you've got some reading to do." Athena sniffed, she hated Romans, and this one wasn't doing much to improve the situation, judging by the way he kept glaring at her daughter.

"Athena, that wasn't nice!"

"Sorry Aunt Hestia, let me rephrase: Boy, please go to your seat and begin reading the next chapter of the book."

At this, the boy looked even more confused and he turned to his Preator, "Book?"

Reyna just shrugged and waved the novel at him, "Did you not listen to Lord Mercury when he was briefing you about what was to happen?"

Still the boy looked confused, but anger started to show through the cracks. "What briefing, all I was doing was sitting in the temple getting ready to do a reading of the fates when I suddenly ended up here!"

At this, it was the turn of all the other mortals to look confused, Hermes and Apollo had said that they would all be briefed before getting there. Annabeth turned to whisper in her boyfriends ear.

"Looks like you're not the only one that the gods hate!"

"Nope, this guy is so much worse than me it is untrue, I mean, he slaughters teddy bears to read the future from their stuffing!"

Percy hadn't bother to whisper this bit and all the demigods cracked up laughing, though secretively, Annabeth started to pull the dolphin closer to her so as to keep it safe from psychotic stuffed animal killers.

Although Poseidon enjoyed all of them making fun of someone who his son quite clearly hated, he did actually want to know what was going to happen next to book Percy, so , over the laughter, He called out, "Hey, can we please just continue with the book already?"

At this, Reyna sighed, but she would not disobey the Lord Neptune so she threw the book at Octavian. "Read."

"What? You can't be se…"

"READ!"

With that, the boy gave up and decided it might be better for his health if he did what he was told.

"**A God Buys us Cheeseburgers,"**

"Poseidon, you better not have gone to see your son _again!" _Zeus grumbled at his older brother who just shrugged it off and waved the dumbstruck kid on.

**The next afternoon, June 14, seven days before the solstice, our train rolled into Denver. We hadn't eaten since the night before in the dining car, somewhere in Kansas. We hadn't taken a shower since Half-Blood Hill,**

"Ewwww!" Aphrodite shuddered delicately.

**and I was sure that was obvious.**

"Maybe I'm the one that bought them, after all, I do really need to give you guys a makeover." Aphrodite pondered looking at the cute couple in front of her.

Annabeth simply rolled her eyes, "Thanks, but no thanks. And it wasn't you Lady Aphrodite."

"Yeah mom," Piper chimed in, "Think about how you reacted when Lord Hermes gave me that big mac earlier. How did you know I was a vegetarian by the way? Not that I'm complaining about the tofu, but still…" She directed the last bit at the god in question who just winked and shot her a grin.

"I make it my business to learn all I can about beautiful young ladies miss McLean!"

At the Travis turned to a flabbergasted Octavian and almost begged him, "Okay, please read on before my dad makes me sick, literally!"

**"Let's try to contact Chiron," Annabeth said. "I want to tell him about your talk with the river spirit."**

**"We can't use****phones, right?"**

"No seaweed brain, but thankfully we don't have to use phones." Annabeth informed him with a playful smack to the head.

"Well of course I know that now!" He complained before kissing her.

**"I'm not talking****about phones**."

**We wandered through downtown for about half an hour, though I wasn't sure what Annabeth was looking for. The air was dry and hot, which felt weird after the humidity of St. Louis. Everywhere we turned, the Rocky Mountains seemed to be staring at me, like a tidal wave about to crash into the city.**

"Percy, is your brain full of water?" Nico asked him, a grave look on his face.

"Nope, it's full of kelp!" The cousin added and soon, all three of them were discussing the consistency of every demigods brains, though it is better wif we just ignore that conversation.

**Finally we found an empty do-it-yourself car wash. We veered toward the stall farthest from the street, keeping our eyes open for patrol cars. We were three adolescents hanging out at a car wash without a car; any cop worth his doughnuts would figure we were up to no good.**

"Any cop worth his doughnuts would also know that you were a fugitive Perce!" Connor sulked.

**"What exactly are we doing?" I asked, as Grover took out the spray gun.**

**"It's seventy-five cents," he grumbled. "I've only got two quarters left. Annabeth?"**

**"Don't look at me," she said. "The dining car wiped me out."**

**I fished out my last bit of change and passed Grover a quarter, which left me two nickels and one drachma from Medusa's place.**

**"Excellent," Grover said. "We could do it with a spray bottle, of course, but the connection isn't as good, and my arm gets tired of pumping."**

At this, all the male (greek) demigods (and gods) cracked up laughing.

"I don't get it!" Artemis frowned.

"Don't worry sister, you don't want to." Athena glared at her family in disgust, but this just made them all laugh harder as it meant that she understood the joke.

**"What are you talking about?"**

**He fed in the quarters and set the knob to FINE MIST. "I-M'ing."**

**"Instant messaging?"**

**"**_**Iris**_**-messaging," Annabeth corrected. "The rainbow goddess Iris carries messages for the gods. If you know how to ask, and she's not too busy, she'll do the same for half-bloods."**

"Or Fleece will." Percy called out with a grin while Reyna and Octavian just looked confused, again.

"What is an Iris Message?" The former asked Jason, but before he could reply, Annabeth interrupted.

"Don't worry, I'm pretty sure that I explain it in the book. After all, Percy is an idiot."

"HEY!"

**"You summon the goddess with a spray gun?"**

"Um, never say that to her unless you want to be force fed wheat germ tea!" Percy informed the group helpfully.

"What's wrong with wheat germ tea?"

"Nothing Lady Demeter."

**Grover pointed the nozzle in the air and water hissed out in a thick white mist. "Unless you know an easier way to make a rainbow."**

**Sure enough, late afternoon light filtered through the vapor and broke into colors.**

**Annabeth held her palm out to me. "Drachma, please."**

**I handed it over.**

**She raised the coin over her head. "O goddess, accept our offering."**

Percy shook his head, "You should have said _Oh Fleece, do me a solid!" _

Annabeth looked at him incredulously, "Where are you getting this from?"

"Tell you later, it's a long story."

**She threw the drachma into the rainbow. It disappeared in a golden shimmer.**

**"Half-Blood Hill," Annabeth requested.**

**For a moment, nothing happened.**

**Then I was looking through the mist at strawberry fields, and the Long Island Sound in the distance. We seemed to be on the porch of the Big House. Standing with his back to us at the railing was a sandy-haired guy in shorts and an orange tank top. He was holding a bronze sword and seemed to be staring intently at something down in the meadow.**

**"Luke!" I called.**

Hermes sighed happily, but began wondering why his son wasn't in the room, reading with them. Surely he deserved such an honor as he was one of the main characters, right?

**He turned, eyes wide. I could swear he was standing three feet in front of me through a screen of mist, except I could only see the part of him that appeared in the rainbow.**

**"Percy!" His scarred face broke into a grin. "Is that Annabeth, too? Thank the gods! Are you guys okay?"**

"That boy has definitely had enough cereal." Demeter said smiling.

"Which just goes to prove how bad cereal is for the human brain!" Katie whispered to Will and they both cracked up laughing trying to hide the dark atmosphere that was beginning to fall around the demigods again.

**"We're ... uh ... fine," Annabeth stammered. She was madly straightening her dirty T-shirt, trying to comb the loose hair out of her face.**

"Ohhh, I see a love triangle forming!" Aphrodite sang with glee (**A/N: sorry, couldn't resist that)**

"No. You don't!" Annabeth spat the words, glaring at the goddess who sensed that it was not a good idea to press the issue any further.

Octavian and Reyna (the only two not used to this side of Annabeth) stared at her in shock and admiration over the fact that she dare take on a god. In fact, it took a small cough from Hephaestus to get the story going again.

**"We thought—Chiron—I mean—"**

**"He's down at the cabins." Luke's smile faded. "We're having some issues with the campers.** **Listen, is everything cool with you? Is Grover all right?"**

**"I'm right here," Grover called. He held the nozzle out to one side and stepped into Luke's line of vision. "What kind of issues?"**

**Just then a big Lincoln Continental pulled into the car wash with its stereo turned to maximum hip-hop. As the car slid into the next stall, the bass from the subwoofers vibrated so much, it shook the pavement.**

**"Chiron had to—what's that noise?" Luke yelled.**

**"I'll take care of it.'" Annabeth yelled back, looking very relieved to have an excuse to get out of sight.**

"Percy, if you weren't so oblivious to the future at this point, I would throttle you!"

The son of Poseidon sent a grateful prayer to _Apollo_ that he did _not _know the future then, looking everywhere but at his girlfriend, something that is kinda hard to do when she is sitting on your lap, but still.

Feeling the prayer, Apollo fidgeted slightly, but he couldn't work out who it came from, which was rather irritating for the god of prophecies and foresight.

**"Grover, come on!"**

**"What?" Grover said. "But—"**

**"Give Percy the nozzle and come on!" she ordered.**

**Grover muttered something about girls being harder to understand than the Oracle at Delphi,**

"_Wait, _you guys actually have an Oracle?" Octavian cut himself off to demand from the Greeks. He seemed a little surprised when Rachel stood up.

"That would be me."

"Really, _you're _the Oracle?" The boy sneered, taking in the sight of the small-ish girl with red hair and jeans so stained with paint and markers that it was almost impossible to work out their true colour.

"Yes, I'm the Oracle, and you look like the child snatcher from chitty chitty bang bang!" She responded primly before returning to her seat. Octavian's mouth fell open at the insult while everyone else laughed.

**then he handed me the spray gun and followed Annabeth.**

**I readjusted the hose so I could keep the rainbow going and still see Luke.**

"Don't you dare!" Poseidon warned the love goddess whose eyes had begun to sparkle with malice.

"Oh, come on, just a little crush?"

"No Aphrodite, my son is not going to fall in love with Hermes' brat!"

"HEY, not cool uncle P!"

"Sorry Hermes."

**"Chiron had to break up a fight," Luke shouted to me over the music. "Things are pretty tense here, Percy. Word leaked out about the Zeus—Poseidon standoff. We're still not sure how—probably the same scumbag who summoned the hellhound.** **Now the campers are starting to take sides. It's shaping up like the Trojan War all over again. Aphrodite, Ares, and Apollo are backing Poseidon, more or less. Athena is backing Zeus."**

The throne room went quiet as Zeus began to glare at the mentioned council members, but, upon a poke in the ribs from Reyna, Octavian decided that now would be a good time to read on.

**I shuddered to think that Clarisse's cabin would ever be on my dad's side for anything.**

**In the next stall, I heard Annabeth and some guy arguing with each other, then the music's volume decreased drastically.**

**"So what's your status?" Luke asked me. "Chiron will be sorry he missed you."**

**I told him pretty much everything, including my dreams.**

"Ooooh…"

"NO APHRODITE!"

"Kill joys!" She muttered as she turned to rest her head on her husband's shoulder. At this, Hephaestus looked pleased and Ares just scowled.

**It felt so good to see him, to feel like I was back at camp even for a few minutes, that I didn't realize how long I had talked until the beeper went off on the spray machine, and I realized I only had one more minute before the water shut off.**

**"I wish I could be there," Luke told me. "We can't help much from here, I'm afraid, but listen ... it had to be Hades who took the master bolt. He was there at Olympus at the winter solstice. I was chaperoning a field trip and we saw him."**

**"But Chiron said the gods can't take each other's magic items directly."**

**"That's true," Luke said, looking troubled. "Still ... Hades has the helm of darkness. How could anybody else sneak into the throne room and steal the master bolt?**

"Maybe I should go and hunt down that brat for being so disrespectful!" Hades glowered at the floor while his wife tried to calm him.

Annabeth turned to place her head in Percy's neck saying, "Please do, and save us a whole lot of trouble while you're at it!"

**You'd have to be invisible."**

"Wait, is he hinting that _my daughter_ had anything to do with it?" Athena fumed.

At the mention of the word daughter, Octavian once again turned to glare at Annabeth. This time, it took him being attacked by a flock of owls to get him to continue reading again.

**We were both silent, until Luke seemed to realize what he'd said.**

**"Oh, hey," he protested. "I didn't mean Annabeth. She and I have known each other forever. She would never ... I mean, she's like a little sister to me."**

"Yeah, sure, that's why you trapped me under the sky!" Annabeth scowled as she spoke but one said the words loud enough for the other demigods to hear her, which, of course, confused the Romans even more. Instead of explaining however, she just waved Octavian on.

**I wondered if Annabeth would like that description.**

**In the stall next to us, the music stopped completely. A man screamed in terror, car doors slammed, and the Lincoln peeled out of the car wash.**

"What did you do exactly?" Hera asked the girl who blushed bright red.

"I may or may not have drawn my knife on him."

"ANNABETH, you KNOW you are not allowed to attack mortals!"

"Sorry Mother."

**"You'd better go see what that was," Luke said. "Listen, are you wearing the flying shoes? I'll feel better if I know they've done you some good."**

**"Oh ... uh, yeah!" I tried not to sound like a guilty liar. "Yeah, they've come in handy."**

**"Really?" He grinned. "They fit and everything?"**

**The water shut off. The mist started to evaporate.**

**"Well, take care of yourself out there in Denver," Luke called, his voice getting fainter. "And tell Grover it'll be better this time! Nobody will get turned into a pine tree if he just—"**

Thalia flinched, "he just _had _to go and bring that up didn't he!"

"Well, look on the bright side Thals, you're not a tree anymore!" Nico told her. Thankfully, they read on so no one heard the queens reply.

**But the mist was gone, and Luke's image faded to nothing. I was alone in a wet, empty car wash stall.**

**Annabeth and Grover came around the corner, laughing, but stopped when they saw my face. Annabeth's smile faded. "What happened, Percy? What did Luke say?"**

**"Not much," I lied, my stomach feeling as empty as a Big Three cabin.**

**"Come on, let's find some dinner."**

"FOOD!" Apollo cheered loudly making Will slam his head into his hands.

"I am not related to him, I am not related to him, I am not…"

Piper went over and petted him on the shoulder. "Join the club will, we have cookies!"

"So not making me feel any better Pipes!"

"I know, I just couldn't resist."

**A few minutes later, we were sitting at a booth in a gleaming chrome diner.**

**All around us, families were eating burgers and drinking malts and sodas.**

**Finally the waitress came over. She raised her eyebrow skeptically. "Well?"**

**I said, "We, um, want to order dinner."**

"Well noooooo…" Travis mocked.

"We thought you wanted to fly to Canada!" Connor finished.

**"You kids have money to pay for it?"**

**Grover's lower lip quivered. I was afraid he would start bleating, or worse, start eating the linoleum.**

**Annabeth looked ready to pass out from hunger.**

**I was trying to think up a sob story for the waitress when a rumble shook the whole building; a motorcycle the size of a baby elephant had pulled up to the curb.**

**All conversation in the diner stopped. The motorcycle's headlight glared red. Its gas tank had flames painted on it, and a shotgun holster riveted to either side, complete with shotguns. The seat was leather—but leather that looked like ... well, Caucasian human skin.**

"ARES?" The whole room who didn't know the story called out, glaring at the war god.

"What are you doing there?" Hera seemed to be throwing enough daggers with her eyes to make even this god flinch as he answered.

"I have no idea Mommy."

At this, Hermes and Apollo started to snicker, but their own glare from their stepmother soon shut them up.

**The guy on the bike would've made pro wrestlers run for Mama. He was dressed in a red muscle shirt and black jeans and a black leather duster, with a hunting knife strapped to his thigh. He wore red wraparound shades, and he had the cruelest, most brutal face I'd ever seen— handsome, I guess, but wicked—with an oily black crew cut and cheeks that were scarred from many, many fights.**

"Oh yeah, I rock!" Ares sighed happily while Clarisse leaned over to Piper, "You're club still recruiting?"

**The weird thing was, I felt like I'd seen his face somewhere before.**

**As he walked into the diner, a hot, dry wind blew through the place. All the people rose, as if they were hypnotized, but the biker waved his hand dismissively and they all sat down again. Everybody went back to their conversations. The waitress blinked, as if somebody had just pressed the rewind button on her brain. She asked us again, "You kids have money to pay for it?"**

**The biker said, "It's on me." He slid into our booth, which was way too small for him, and crowded Annabeth against the window.**

"Which was not pleasant." Annabeth added.

**He looked up at the waitress, who was gaping at him, and said, "Are you still here?"**

**He pointed at her, and she stiffened. She turned as if she'd been spun around, then marched back toward the kitchen.**

**The biker looked at me. I couldn't see his eyes behind the red shades, but bad feelings started boiling in my stomach. Anger, resentment, bitterness. I wanted to hit a wall. I wanted to pick a fight with somebody. Who did this guy think he was?**

"Oh gods Percy, don't let him provoke you." Katie sighed heavily.

**He gave me a wicked grin. "So you're old Seaweed's kid, huh?"**

"Excuse me?" Poseidon looked up from playing peek a boo with his toddler son to glare at his nephew who just shrugged.

"This hasn't happened yet!"

**I should've been surprised, or scared, but instead I felt like I was looking at my stepdad, Gabe.**

Poseidon's growl shook Olympus at it's roots.

**I wanted to rip this guy's head off. "What's it to you?"**

**Annabeth's eyes flashed me a warning. "Percy, this is—"**

**The biker raised his hand.**

**"S'okay," he said. "I don't mind a little attitude. Long as you remember who's the boss. You know who I am, little cousin?"**

**Then it struck me why this guy looked familiar. He had the same vicious sneer as some of the kids at Camp Half-Blood, the ones from cabin five.**

**"You're Clarisse's dad," I said.** **"Ares, god of War."**

"Not my normal introduction, but, meh, it works." Ares shrugged again, while Clarisse glowed with pride. Piper grumbled.

"So much for joining my club, daddy's little girl!"

**Ares grinned and took off his shades. Where his eyes should've been, there was only fire, empty sockets glowing with miniature nuclear explosions. "That's right, punk. I heard you broke Clarisse's spear."**

"I still haven't forgiven you for that Jackson!"

"Oh, get over it Clarisse, you got a new one didn't you?" Annabeth stuck up for her boyfriend, making Athena fume again.

**"She was asking for it."**

**"Probably. That's cool. I don't fight my kids' fights, you know? What I'm here for—I heard you were in town. I got a little proposition for you."**

**The waitress came back with heaping trays of food—cheeseburgers, fries, onion rings, and chocolate shakes.**

**Ares handed her a few gold drachmas.**

Piper rolled her eyes, "Well, my club may not be doing too well, but Leo's kingdom is flourishing!" This got a laugh from everyone in the room, though it was obvious that Reyna and Octavian didn't have a clue what they were laughing about.

**She looked nervously at the coins. "But, these aren't..."**

**Ares pulled out his huge knife and started cleaning his fingernails. "Problem, sweetheart?"**

"_ARES!"_

"Sorry Mommy."

"You better be!"

**The waitress swallowed, then left with the gold.**

**"You can't do that," I told Ares. "You can't just threaten people with a knife."**

**Ares laughed. "Are you kidding? I love this country. Best place since Sparta. Don't you carry a weapon, punk? You should. Dangerous world out there. Which brings me to my proposition. I need you to do me a favor."**

**"What favor could I do for a god?"**

**"Something a god doesn't have time to do himself. It's nothing much. I left my shield at an abandoned water park here in town. I was going on a little ... date with my girlfriend. We were interrupted. I left my shield behind. I want you to fetch it for me."**

**"Why don't you go back and get it yourself?"**

**The fire in his eye sockets glowed a little hotter.**

**"Why don't I turn you into a prairie dog and run you over with my Harley? Because I don't feel like it.**

"More like you're a coward that's scared of the kids dad!" Hephaestus snickered. Ares looked like he would dearly have loved to respond, but he caught sight of Poseidon's glare and shut his mouth pretty quickly.

**A god is giving you an opportunity to prove yourself, Percy Jackson. Will you prove yourself a coward?" He leaned forward. "Or maybe you only fight when there's a river to dive into, so your daddy can protect you."**

**I wanted to punch this guy, but somehow, I knew he was waiting for that. Ares's power was causing my anger. He'd love it if I attacked. I didn't want to give him the satisfaction.**

**"We're not interested," I said. "We've already got a quest."**

**Ares's fiery eyes made me see things I didn't want to see—blood and smoke and corpses on the battlefield. "I know all about your quest, punk. When that**_**item**___**was first stolen, Zeus sent his best out looking for it: Apollo, Athena, Artemis, and me, naturally. If I couldn't sniff out a weapon that powerful ..." He licked his lips, as if the very thought of the master bolt made him hungry.**

"_ARES!"_

"Sorry Daddy!"

At this, everyone burst out laughing, seeing the war god scolded by both his parents and reacting like a little kid was too much for everyone. Through the laughter,, you could also hear a steady bang, bang, bang coming from where Clarisse was slamming her head into the arm of her chair, taking up Will's chant.

**"Well ... if I couldn't find it, you got no hope. Nevertheless, I'm trying to give you the benefit of the doubt. Your dad and I go way back. After all, I'm the one who told him my suspicions about old Corpse Breath."**

Everyone stopped to stare as the god of war jumped from his seat with a girly yelp. Where the padding used to be, there was now the head of a giant hell hound.

"Uncle…" Ares whined like a little brat.

The Lard of the dead, still snickering, shook his head. "As much as I would like to take credit for that, it wasn't me!"

Everyone turned to Nico who just shrugged looking confused. No one knew where it had come from until Persephone started cackling and everyone turned to her in amazement.

"Daughter, did you do this?"

"Yes Daddy."

"Kore, how _could _you!" Demeter screeched at the same time that Hades bent down to pull his wife onto his lap.

"My dear, have I ever told you how much I love you?" With that the two of them kissed and Demeter burst into tears. On the other hand, Zeus looked thoroughly sickened and waved the Roman boy on.

**"You told him Hades stole the bolt?"**

**"Sure. Framing somebody to start a war. Oldest trick in the book. I recognized it immediately.**

Although his seat now appeared to have gone back to normal, Ares poked it with his knife a few times before returning to his throne, only to have skeletal hands come up and bind his wrists to the arms. Enraged, he called out. "Who the Hades is it this time?"

Again, all eyes turned to the monarchs of the underworld before turning to Nico who just shrugged. "Guilty."

**In a way, you got me to thank for your little quest."**

**"Thanks," I grumbled.**

**"Hey, I'm a generous guy. Just do my little job, and I'll help you on your way. I'll arrange a ride west for you and your friends."**

**"We're doing fine on our own."**

**"Yeah, right. No money. No wheels. No clue what you're up against. Help me out, and maybe I'll tell you something you need to know. Something about your mom."**

**"My mom?"**

**He grinned. "That got your attention. The water park is a mile west on Delancy. You can't miss it. Look for the Tunnel of Love ride."**

**"What interrupted your date?" I asked. "Something scare you off?"**

**Ares bared his teeth, but I'd seen his threatening look before on Clarisse. There was something false about it, almost like he was nervous.**

Everyone turned to laugh and watch the mentioned god start fighting off 10 pairs of bony hands for a while before they all got bored and forced an indignant Octavian to read on.

**"You're lucky you met me, punk, and not one of the other Olympians. They're not as forgiving of rudeness as I am.** **I'll meet you back here when you're done. Don't disappoint me."**

**After that I must have fainted, or fallen into a trance, because when I opened my eyes again, Ares was gone. I might've thought the conversation had been a dream, but Annabeth and Grover's expressions told me otherwise.**

**"Not good," Grover said. "Ares sought you out, Percy. This is not good."**

**I stared out the window. The motorcycle had disappeared.**

**Did Ares really know something about my mom, or was he just playing with me? Now that he was gone, all the anger had drained out of me. I realized Ares must love to mess with people's emotions. That was his power—cranking up the passions so badly, they clouded your ability to think.**

**"It's probably some kind of trick," I said. "Forget Ares. Let's just go."**

"As much as I despise my nephew, I don't believe that that would be a very good idea son." Poseidon stated.

Percy looked up from his girlfriend's hair and grinned at his dad. "Yeah, I know, Annie here told me!"

**"We can't," Annabeth said. "Look, I hate Ares as much as anybody, but you don't ignore the gods unless you want serious bad fortune. He wasn't kidding about turning you into a rodent."**

**I looked down at my cheeseburger, which suddenly didn't seem so appetizing. "Why does he need us?"**

**"Maybe it's a problem that requires brains,"**

Again, laughter filled the throne room of Olympus and Athena simply looked smug.

**Annabeth said. "Ares has strength. That's all he has. Even strength has to bow to wisdom sometimes."**

**"But this water park ... he acted almost scared. What would make a war god run away like that?"**

**Annabeth and Grover glanced nervously at each other.**

**Annabeth said, "I'm afraid we'll have to find out."**

**The sun was sinking behind the mountains by the time we found the water park. Judging from the sign, it once had been called WATERLAND, but now some of the letters were smashed out, so it read WAT R A D.**

**The main gate was padlocked and topped with barbed wire. Inside, huge dry waterslides and tubes and pipes curled everywhere, leading to empty pools. Old tickets and advertisements fluttered around the asphalt. With night coming on, the place looked sad and creepy.**

**"If Ares brings his girlfriend here for a date," I said, staring up at the barbed wire, "I'd hate to see what she looks like."**

Aphrodite started glaring at Percy while all the other Olympians attempted to turn their laughter into coughs.

**"Percy," Annabeth warned. "Be more respectful."**

**"Why? I thought you hated Ares."**

**"He's still a god. And his girlfriend is very temperamental."**

**"You don't want to insult her looks," Grover added.**

**"Who is she? Echidna?"**

"That's it Jackson, if you two were not such a cute couple, I would rip you to pieces right here and now!"

"Sorry Lady Aphrodite, I just didn't think that anyone as refined and beautiful as you would fall for someone as barbaric as Ares." Percy smiled sweetly at her until she took the statement as a compliment and calmed down.

Sighing in relief he leaned back in his chair just as Thalia poked him in the ribs and raised an eyebrow. "Smarmy."

"But effective!" He countered.

**"No, Aphrodite," Grover said, a little dreamily. "Goddess of love."**

**"I thought she was married to somebody," I said. "Hephaestus."**

**"What's your point?" he asked.**

**"Oh." I suddenly felt the need to change the subject. "So how do we get in?"**

_**"Maia!"**_

Again, Hermes bowed his head against the laughter over his choice of words.

**Grover's shoes sprouted wings.**

**He flew over the fence, did an unintended somersault in midair, then stumbled to a landing on the opposite side. He dusted off his jeans, as if he'd planned the whole thing. "You guys coming?"**

**Annabeth and I had to climb the old-fashioned way, holding down the barbed wire for each other as we crawled over the top.**

**The shadows grew long as we walked through the park, checking out the attractions. There was Ankle Biter Island, Head Over Wedgie, and Dude, Where's My Swimsuit?**

**No monsters came to get us. Nothing made the slightest noise.**

**We found a souvenir shop that had been left open. Merchandise still lined the shelves: snow globes, pencils, postcards, and racks of—**

**"Clothes," Annabeth said. "Fresh clothes."**

**"Yeah," I said. "But you can't just—"**

**"Watch me."**

"Annabeth!"

"Sorry Mom, but I dare you to travel across half the country, fighting off monsters, and still not want to get a change of clothes when you could!" Annabeth replied flatly.

**She snatched an entire row of stuff of the racks and disappeared into the changing room. A few minutes later she came out in Waterland flower-print shorts, a big red Waterland T-shirt, and commemorative Waterland surf shoes. A Waterland backpack was slung over her shoulder, obviously stuffed with more goodies.**

**"What the heck." Grover shrugged. Soon, all three of us were decked out like walking advertisements for the defunct theme park.**

**We continued searching for the Tunnel of Love.**

Aphrodite sat up straight, smiling evily, sending a shiver down Athena's spine.

**I got the feeling that the whole park was holding its breath. "So Ares and Aphrodite," I said, to keep my mind off the growing dark, "they have a thing going?"**

**"That's old gossip, Percy," Annabeth told me. "Three-thousand-year-old gossip."**

**"What about Aphrodite's husband?"**

**"Well, you know," she said. "Hephaestus. The black smith. He was crippled when he was a baby, thrown off Mount Olympus by Zeus.**

"I did nothing of the sort, that was all Hera's doing!" Zeus sniffed while his wife went bright red and Hephaestus glared at her.

**So he isn't exactly handsome. Clever with his hands, and all, but Aphrodite isn't into brains and talent, you know?"**

**"She likes bikers."**

**"Whatever."**

**"Hephaestus knows?"**

**"Oh sure," Annabeth said. "He caught them together once. I mean, literally caught them, in a golden net, and invited all the gods to come and laugh at them. Hephaestus is always trying to embarrass them. That's why they meet in out-of-the-way places, like ..."**

**She stopped, looking straight ahead. "Like that."**

**In front of us was an empty pool that would've been awesome for skateboarding. It was at least fifty yards across and shaped like a bowl.**

**Around the rim, a dozen bronze statues of Cupid**

"HIS NAME IS_ EROS_!" Aphrodite screeched.

"Geez Mom, could you take it down an octave please, I think you just burst my ear drum!" Piper whined.

**stood guard with wings spread and bows ready to fire. On the opposite side from us, a tunnel opened up, probably where the water flowed into when the pool was full. The sign above it read, THRILL RIDE O' LOVE: THIS IS NOT YOUR PARENTS' TUNNEL OF LOVE!**

**Grover crept toward the edge. "Guys, look."**

**Marooned at the bottom of the pool was a pink-and-white two-seater boat with a canopy over the top and little hearts painted all over it. In the left seat, glinting in the fading light, was Ares's shield, a polished circle of bronze.**

**"This is too easy," I said. "So we just walk down there and get it?"**

"Oh this should be interesting!" Dionysus groaned surprising everyone, they had all assumed that he had fallen asleep.

**Annabeth ran her fingers along the base of the nearest Cupid statue.**

**"There's a Greek letter carved here," she said. "Eta. I wonder ..."**

Hephaestus started laughing, this really was going to be interesting. On the other hand, Percy and Annabeth blushed again, they knew what was going to happen next.

**"Grover," I said, "you smell any monsters?"**

**He sniffed the wind. "Nothing."**

**"Nothing—like, in-the-Arch-and-you-didn't-smell-Echidna nothing, or really nothing?"**

"HEY, that was mean Percy!" Thalia complained, poking him in the forehead.

**Grover looked hurt. "I told you, that was underground."**

**"Okay, I'm sorry." I took a deep breath. "I'm going down there."**

**"I'll go with you." Grover** **didn't sound too enthusiastic, but I got the feeling he was trying to make up for what had happened in St. Louis.**

**"No," I told him. "I want you to stay up top with the flying shoes. You're the Red Baron, a flying ace, remember? I'll be counting on you for backup, in case something goes wrong."**

"You say that, but you just want to be alone with Annie in the thrill ride 'o love don't you Percy!" Travis stated, winking at the happy couple.

**Grover puffed up his chest a little. "Sure. But what could go wrong?"**

**"I don't know. Just a feeling. Annabeth, come with me—"**

"See!" Connor cackled, carrying on from his brother's comments.

**"Are you kidding?" She looked at me as if I'd just dropped from the moon. Her cheeks were bright red.**

**"What's the problem now?" I demanded.**

**"Me, go with you to the ... the 'Thrill Ride of Love'? How embarrassing is that? What if somebody saw me?"**

"Yes, because someone you know is just going to _happen _to pass by." Rachel rolled her eyes.

**"Who's going to see you?" But my face was burning now, too. Leave it to a girl to make everything complicated.**

"Wow Rachel, you think like Percy!" Nico laughed.

**"Fine," I told her. "I'll do it myself." But when I started down the side of the pool, she followed me, muttering about how boys always messed things up.**

"Why couldn't she have kept that outlook?" Athena grumbled, watching her precious daughter and the sea spawn snuggle even closer together.

**We reached the boat. The shield was propped on one seat, and next to it was a lady's silk scarf. I tried to imagine Ares and Aphrodite here, a couple of gods meeting in a junked-out amusement-park ride. Why? Then I noticed something I hadn't seen from up top: mirrors all the way around the rim of the pool, facing this spot. We could see ourselves no matter which direction we looked. That must be it. While Ares and Aphrodite were smooching with each other they could look at their favorite people: themselves.**

Aphrodite winked at Ares while everyone else laughed. "Nice choice, but it's a pity that I don't date guys who still call their parents Mommy and Daddy!" With this last comment, she turned to plant a kiss on her surprise husband's nose.

**I picked up the scarf. It shimmered pink, and the perfume was indescribable—rose, or mountain laurel. Something good. I smiled, a little dreamy, and was about to rub the scarf against my cheek when Annabeth ripped it out of my hand and stuffed it in her pocket. "Oh, no you don't. Stay away from that love magic."**

Aphrodite pouted. "Why not? I wouldn't do anything to such a handsome face!"

"You just threatened to tear him to shreds." Hephaestus reminded her.

"I mean other than that!"

**"What?"**

**"Just get the shield, Seaweed Brain, and let's get out of here."**

**The moment I touched the shield, I knew we were in trouble. My hand broke through something that had been connecting it to the dashboard. A cobweb,** **I thought, but then I looked at a strand of it on my palm and saw it was some kind of metal filament, so fine it was almost invisible. A trip wire.**

"I can't wait to see this in real life!" Hermes sniggered, moving to the edge of his seat.

**"Wait," Annabeth said.**

**"Too late."**

**"There's another Greek letter on the side of the boat, another Eta. This is a trap."**

"You know, for a daughter of Athena, that was pretty slow going." Percy joked, making her pout.

"I was 12!"

**Noise erupted all around us, of a million gears grinding, as if the whole pool were turning into one giant machine.**

"You better not kill themHephaestus!" Poseidon growled. The black smith simply shrugged.

"I won't… probably."

"Yes, cause that's reassuring." Leo sighed.

**Grover yelled, "Guys!"**

**Up on the rim, the Cupid statues were drawing their bows into firing position. Before I could suggest taking cover, they shot, but not at us. They fired at each other, across the rim of the pool. Silky cables trailed from the arrows, arcing over the pool and anchoring where they landed to form a huge golden asterisk. Then smaller metallic threads started weaving together magically between the main strands, making a net.**

**"We have to get out," I said.**

**"Duh!" Annabeth said.**

**I grabbed the shield and we ran, but going up the slope of the pool was not as easy as going down.**

**"Come on!" Grover shouted.**

**He was trying to hold open a section of the net for us, but wherever he touched it, the golden threads started to wrap around his hands.**

**The Cupids' heads popped open. Out came video cam eras. Spotlights rose up all around the pool, blinding us with illumination, and a loudspeaker voice boomed: "Live to Olympus in one minute ... Fifty-nine seconds, fifty-eight ..."**

**"Hephaestus!" Annabeth screamed. "I'm so stupid.'**

"yes, yes you are." Percy got in before she mock punched him in the face.

**Eta is H.' He made this trap to catch his wife with Ares. Now we're going to be broadcast live to Olympus and look like absolute fools!"**

**We'd almost made it to the rim when the row of mirrors opened like hatches and thousands of tiny metallic ... things poured out.**

**Annabeth screamed.**

**It was an army of wind-up creepy-crawlies: bronze-gear bodies, spindly legs, little pincer mouths, all scuttling toward us in a wave of clacking, whirring metal.**

**"Spiders!" Annabeth said. "Sp—sp—aaaah!"**

"You were so cute then." Percy snickered, earning himself yet another slap, though this one was slightly harder than all the others.

**I'd never seen her like this before. She fell backward in terror and almost got overwhelmed by the spider robots before I pulled her up and dragged her back toward the boat.**

**The things were coming out from all around the rim now, millions of them, flooding toward the center of the pool, completely surrounding us.**

Athena looked like she was going to be sick.

**I told myself they probably weren't programmed to kill, just corral us and bite us and make us look stupid. Then again, this was a trap meant for gods. And we weren't gods.**

Poseidon was hugging the small boy in his arms so tight that baby Percy was squirming. "Daddy…"

"Oops, sorry son." He let go slightly.

**Annabeth and I climbed into the boat.**

**I started kicking away the spiders as they swarmed aboard. I yelled at Annabeth to help me, but she was too paralyzed to do much more than scream.**

**"Thirty, twenty-nine," called the loudspeaker.**

**The spiders started spitting out strands of metal thread, trying to tie us down. The strands were easy enough to break at first, but there were so many of them, and the spiders just kept coming. I kicked one away from Annabeth's leg and its pincers took a chunk out of my new surf shoe.**

**Grover hovered above the pool in his flying sneakers, trying to pull the net loose, but it wouldn't budge.**

**Think, I told myself. Think.**

"Don't strain yourself." Clarisse sneered.

**The Tunnel of Love entrance was under the net. We could use it as an exit, except that it was blocked by a million robot spiders.**

**"Fifteen, fourteen," the loudspeaker called.**

**Water, I thought. Where does the ride's water come from?**

**Then I saw them: huge water pipes behind the mirrors, where the spiders had come from. And up above the net, next to one of the Cupids, a glass-windowed booth that must be the controller's station.**

**"Grover!" I yelled. "Get into that booth! Find the 'on' switch!"**

**"But—"**

**"Do it!" It was a crazy hope, but it was our only chance. The spiders were all over the prow of the boat now. Annabeth was screaming her head off. I had to get us out of there.**

**Grover was in the controller's booth now, slamming away at the buttons.**

**"Five, four—"**

**Grover looked up at me hopelessly, raising his hands. He was letting me know that he'd pushed every button, but still nothing was happening.**

**I closed my eyes and thought about waves, rushing water, the Mississippi River. I felt a familiar tug in my gut. I tried to imagine that I was dragging the ocean all the way to Denver.**

**"Two, one,**_**zero**_**!"**

**Water exploded out of the pipes. It roared into the pool, sweeping away the spiders. I pulled Annabeth into the seat next to me and fastened her seat belt just as the tidal wave slammed into our boat, over the top, whisking the spiders away and dousing us completely, but not capsizing us. The boat turned, lifted in the flood, and spun in circles around the whirlpool.**

Aphrodite squealed, Percabeth were about to go on their first date!

**The water was full of short-circuiting spiders, some of them smashing against the pool's concrete wall with such force they burst.**

**Spotlights glared down at us. The Cupid-cams were rolling, live to Olympus.**

**But I could only concentrate on controlling the boat. I willed it to ride the current, to keep away from the wall. Maybe it was my imagination, but the boat seemed to respond.**

"Nope son, boats will always listen to you!" Poseidon informed a grinning Percy who winked back at him.

"You should have seen me on the Queen Anne's Revenge!"

**At least, it didn't break into a million pieces. We spun around one last time, the water level now almost high enough to shred us against the metal net. Then the boat's nose turned toward the tunnel and we rocketed through into the darkness.**

**Annabeth and I held tight,** **both of us screaming as the boat shot curls and hugged corners and took forty-five-degree plunges past pictures of Romeo and Juliet and a bunch of other Valentine's Day stuff.**

**Then we were out of the tunnel, the night air whistling through our hair as the boat barreled straight toward the exit.**

**If the ride had been in working order, we would've sailed off a ramp between the golden Gates of Love and splashed down safely in the exit pool. But there was a problem. The Gates of Love were chained. Two boats that had been washed out of the tunnel before us were now piled against the barricade—one submerged, the other cracked in half.**

**"Unfasten your seat belt," I yelled to Annabeth.**

**"Are you crazy?"**

**"Unless you want to get smashed to death." I strapped Ares's shield to my arm. "We're going to have to jump for it." My idea was simple and insane. As the boat struck, we would use its force like a springboard to jump the gate. I'd heard of people surviving car crashes that way, getting thrown thirty or forty feet away from an accident. With luck, we would land in the pool.**

"If you get her killed sea spawn, I swear that I will…"

"Mom, we are both here!" Annabeth pointed out, making Athena stop talking, but also go bright red.

**Annabeth seemed to understand. She gripped my hand as the gates got closer.**

"Awww, that's so sweet, you're holding hands!" Aphrodite cooed.

**"On my mark," I said.**

**"No! On my mark!"**

**"What?"**

**"Simple physics!" she yelled. "Force times the trajectory angle—"**

**"Fine.'" I shouted. "On**_**your**___**mark!"**

Apollo, Hermes, and Ares laughed while Athena growled, stupid sea spawn.

**She hesitated ... hesitated ... then yelled, "Now!"**

_**Crack!**_

**Annabeth was right.**

"I always am!" Annabeth said smugly.

"And modest!" Leo added.

**If we'd jumped when I thought we should've, we would've crashed into the gates. She got us maximum lift.**

**Unfortunately, that was a little more than we needed. Our boat smashed into the pileup and we were thrown into the air, straight over the gates, over the pool, and down toward solid asphalt.**

**Something grabbed me from behind.**

**Annabeth yelled, "Ouch!"**

**Grover!**

"See!" Thalia told her dad, "Grover is good to have along on a quest!"

**In midair, he had grabbed me by the shirt, and Annabeth by the arm, and was trying to pull us out of a crash landing, but Annabeth and I had all the momentum.**

**"You're too heavy!" Grover said. "We're going down!"**

**We spiraled toward the ground, Grover doing his best to slow the fall.**

**We smashed into a photo-board, Grover's head going straight into the hole where tourists would put their faces, pretending to be Noo-Noo the Friendly Whale. Annabeth and I tumbled to the ground, banged up but alive. Ares's shield was still on my arm.**

Aphrodite sighed happily, "For a first date; that must have been pretty memorable!" At this Percy and Annabeth looked at each other and blushed.

**Once we caught our breath, Annabeth and I got Grover out of the photo-board and thanked him for saving our lives. I looked back at the Thrill Ride of Love. The water was subsiding. Our boat had been smashed to pieces against the gates.**

**A hundred yards away, at the entrance pool, the Cupids were still filming.**

**The statues had swiveled so that their cameras were trained straight on us, the spotlights in our faces.**

**"Show's over!" I yelled. "Thank you! Good night!"**

Everyone cracked up laughing at this.

"Only you Percy, only you!" Nico chuckled.

**The Cupids turned back to their original positions. The lights shut off. The park went quiet and dark again, except for the gentle trickle of water into the Thrill Ride of Love's exit pool. I wondered if Olympus had gone to a commercial break, or if our ratings had been any good.**

"Really? That's what you were thinking about?" Annabeth turned to look at him gone out.

"What's wrong with that?"

"I think I'm going to have to ship you off to go live with Leo." Annabeth sighed dramatically making everyone laugh again.

**I hated being teased.** **I hated being tricked. And I had plenty of experience handling bullies who liked to do that stuff to me. I hefted the shield on my arm and turned to my friends. "We need to have a little talk with Ares."**

Just as Octavian was about to put the book down, a new chair appeared and another light flashed in the room. Looks like the new demigod was here for the next chapter.


	18. We Take a Zebra to Vegas

When the smoke finally cleared, it showed at large, Asian boy with his hair in a buzz cut military style. Another Roman, but this one was armed with a bow and quiver rather than a sword. Annabeth thought that maybe he was the son of Apollo, until the boy turned, bowed and introduced himself.

"I'm Frank Zang, son of Mars."

With that, he went over to the new seat and took the book from an amazed looking Octavian. He did, however, stop to grin at Percy in a way that made Aphrodite's eyes shine again. She definitely loved a budding bromance.

Once settled down, he turned to the boy next to him with a questioning look on his face.

"Chapter 16?"

"Y-yeah... Wait, you mean, you got the briefing too?"

Frank looked at him as though he had gone mad. "Of course, everyone did." And with that, he started reading.

**"We Take a Zebra to Vegas,"**

"Ooooh, I love Vegas!" Hermes nodded while Apollo nodded by his side.

**The war god was waiting for us in the diner parking lot.**

**"Well, well," he said. "You didn't get yourself killed."**

"You are sound disappointed!" Poseidon glared at the war god who just gulped and tried to look inexistent, making all the other Olympians, beside Athena of course, laugh hard at his fear.

**"You knew it was a trap," I said.**

"Well, I'm not an idiot!" He defended himself while the wisdom goddess snorted.

"You could have fooled me!"

**Ares gave me a wicked grin. "Bet that crippled black smith was surprised when he netted a couple of stupid kids. You looked good on TV."**

**I shoved his shield at him. "You're a jerk."**

"And a Momma's boy." Hephaestus added, making everyone else snicker.

**Annabeth and Grover caught their breath.**

**Ares grabbed the shield and spun it in the air like pizza dough. It changed form, melting into a bulletproof vest. He slung it across his back.**

**"See that truck over there?" He pointed to an eighteen-wheeler parked across the street from the diner. "That's your ride. Take you straight to L.A., with one stop in Vegas."**

**The eighteen-wheeler had a sign on the back, which I could read only because it was reverse-printed white on black, a good combination for dyslexia: KINDNESS INTERNATIONAL: HUMANE ZOO TRANSPORT. WARNING: LIVE WILD ANIMALS.**

"Wow, that's kind of you Ares." Poseidon growled while Artemis sat closer to the edge of her seat. She didn't like where this was going.

**I said, "You're kidding."**

**Ares snapped his fingers. The back door of the truck unlatched. "Free ride west, punk. Stop complaining. And here's a little something for doing the job."**

**He slung a blue nylon backpack off his handlebars and tossed it to me.**

**Inside were fresh clothes for all of us, twenty bucks in cash, a pouch full of golden drachmas, and a bag of Double Stuff Oreos.**

"Don't trust the gifs." Athena mumbled, her eyes wide, before she turned to glare at her brother. Just what had he given them?

**I said, "I don't want your lousy—"**

**"Thank you, Lord Ares," Grover interrupted, giving me his best red-alert warning look. "Thanks a lot."**

"Stupid Satyr!" Athena growled, earning herself a proud look from her father and a shower from her daughter's boyfriend. Yes, she was beginning to hate that sea rat.

**I gritted my teeth. It was probably a deadly insult to refuse something from a god, but I didn't want anything that Ares had touched. Reluctantly, I slung the backpack over my shoulder. I knew my anger was being caused by the war god's presence, but I was still itching to punch him in the nose. He reminded me of every bully I'd ever faced: Nancy Bobofit, Clarisse, Smelly Gabe, sarcastic teachers—every jerk who'd called me stupid in school or laughed at me when I'd gotten expelled.**

"That sounds about right!" Travis snickered, before he got hit by Clarisse's magic, flying boot.

**I looked back at the diner, which had only a couple of customers now. The waitress who'd served us dinner was watching nervously out the window, like she was afraid Ares might hurt us. She dragged the fry cook out from the kitchen to see. She said something to him. He nodded, held up a little disposable camera and snapped a picture of us.**

**Great, I thought. We'll make the papers again tomorrow.**

**I imagined the headline: TWELVE-YEAR-OLD OUTLAW BEATS UP DEFENSELESS BIKER.**

The whole room was filled with laughter as Ares scowled. "Like you'd stand a chance punk!"

Hearing him, Annabeth, Percy and Thalia shared a conspiratorial smirk, yes, Percy really didn't stand a chance did he?

**"You owe me one more thing," I told Ares, trying to keep my voice level. "You promised me information about my mother."**

**"You sure you can handle the news?" He kick started his motorcycle. "She's not dead."**

**The ground seemed to spin beneath me. "What do you mean?"**

**"I mean she was taken away from the Minotaur before she could die. She was turned into a shower of gold, right? That's metamorphosis. Not death. She's being kept."**

**"Kept. Why?"**

**"You need to study war, punk. Hostages. You take somebody to control somebody else."**

**"Nobody's controlling me."**

"Yeah, apart from Ares and kr…mmmmph." Everyone turned to stare at where Katie had suddenly decided to kiss Travis, effectively shutting him up before he could blurt out something he shouldn't.

**He laughed. "Oh yeah? See you around, kid."**

**I balled up my fists. "You're pretty smug, Lord Ares, for a guy who runs from Cupid statues."**

All the Greek demigods laughed hard at this while Frank shook his head, grinning broadly.

"Typical Percy, you really don't get on with him in any form do you?"

Percy smirked at him. "Just you wait Frank, it gets worse."

**Behind his sunglasses, fire glowed. I felt a hot wind in my hair. "We'll meet again, Percy Jackson. Next time you're in a fight, watch your back."**

**He revved his Harley, then roared off down Delancy Street.**

**Annabeth said, "That was not smart, Percy."**

**"I don't care."**

"Stupid sea spawn!" Athena growled, that move could quite likely get her daughter killed in the future.

**"You don't want a god as your enemy. Especially not that god."**

**"Hey, guys," Grover said. "I hate to interrupt, but ..."**

**He pointed toward the diner. At the register, the last two customers were paying their check, two men in identical black coveralls, with a white logo on their backs that matched the one on the KINDNESS INTERNATIONAL truck.**

**"If we're taking the zoo express," Grover said, "we need to hurry."**

**I didn't like it, but we had no better option. Besides, I'd seen enough of Denver.**

**We ran across the street and climbed in the back of the big rig, closing the doors behind us.**

**The first thing that hit me was the smell. It was like the world's biggest pan of kitty litter.**

Aphrodite, Hera and Demeter all gagged at this, while Artemis began glaring daggers at the book.

**The trailer was dark inside until I uncapped Anaklusmos. The blade cast a faint bronze light over a very sad scene. Sitting in a row of filthy metal cages were three of the most pathetic zoo animals I'd ever beheld: a zebra, a male albino lion, and some weird antelope thing I didn't know the name for.**

**Someone had thrown the lion a sack of turnips, which he obviously didn't want to eat. The zebra and the antelope had each gotten a Styrofoam tray of hamburger meat. The zebra's mane was matted with chewing gum, like somebody had been spitting on it in their spare time. The antelope had a stupid silver birthday balloon tied to one of his horns that read OVER THE HILL!**

**Apparently, nobody had wanted to get close enough to the lion to mess with him, but the poor thing was pacing around on soiled blankets, in a space way too small for him, panting from the stuffy heat of the trailer. He had flies buzzing around his pink eyes and his ribs showed through his white fur.**

"That's horrible!" Piper gaped at the book while everyone else shifted, trying to ignore the evil aura coming from the goddess of the hunt.

**"This is kindness?" Grover yelled. "Humane zoo transport?"**

"Wow, Pipes, you think like a goat." Leo stated, trying to ease the atmosphere. Needless to say, all it did was gain him some strange looks.

**He probably would've gone right back outside to beat up the truckers with his reed pipes, and I would've helped him, but just then the trucks engine roared to life, the trailer started shaking, and we were forced to sit down or fall down.**

**We huddled in the corner on some mildewed feed sacks, trying to ignore the smell and the heat and the flies. Grover talked to the animals in a series of goat bleats, but they just stared at him sadly. Annabeth was in favor of breaking the cages and freeing them on the spot, but I pointed out it wouldn't do much good until the truck stopped moving. Besides, I had a feeling we might look a lot better to the lion than those turnips.**

**I found a water jug and refilled their bowls, then used Anaklusmos to drag the mismatched food out of their cages. I gave the meat to the lion and the turnips to the zebra and the antelope.**

**Grover calmed the antelope down, while Annabeth used her knife to cut the balloon off his horn. She wanted to cut the gum out of the zebra's mane, too, but we decided that would be too risky with the truck bumping around.**

Everyone in the room winced at this.

**We told Grover to promise the animals we'd help them more in the morning, then we settled in for night.**

**Grover curled up on a turnip sack; Annabeth opened our bag of Double Stuff Oreos and nibbled on one halfheartedly; I tried to cheer myself up by concentrating on the fact that we were halfway to Los Angeles. Halfway to our destination. It was only June fourteenth. The solstice wasn't until the twenty-first. We could make it in plenty of time.**

"Never say that!" Nico groaned, "You're just tempting the fates!"

**On the other hand, I had no idea what to expect next. The gods kept toying with me. At least Hephaestus had the decency to be honest about it—**

Percy grinned at the blacksmith who was smiling broadly when he stated.

"And that, is why you are one of my favorite gods."

Everyone seemed to find this amusing apart from Poseidon who just pouted and looked at the toddler version of his son.

"Daddy is still the best right?"

"Yes Daddy!" Both versions of Percy called out before the older one cracked up, along with all of his friends.

**he'd put up cameras and advertised me as entertainment. But even when the cameras weren't rolling, I had a feeling my quest was being watched. I was a source of amusement for the gods.**

**"Hey," Annabeth said, "I'm sorry for freaking out back at the water park, Percy."**

**"That's okay."**

**"It's just..." She shuddered. "Spiders."**

**"Because of the Arachne story," I guessed. "She got turned into a spider for challenging your mom to a weaving contest, right?"**

"Pompous little…"

"ATHENA there are children present!"

"Sorry Father."

**Annabeth nodded. "Arachne's children have been taking revenge on the children of Athena ever since. If there's a spider within a mile of me, it'll find me. I hate the creepy little things. Anyway, I owe you."**

**"We're a team, remember?" I said. "Besides, Grover did the fancy flying."**

**I thought he was asleep, but he mumbled from the corner, "I was pretty amazing, wasn't I?"**

This got a laugh from everyone who knew Grover.

**Annabeth and I laughed.**

**She pulled apart an Oreo, handed me half. "In the Iris message ... did Luke really say nothing?"**

**I munched my cookie and thought about how to answer. The conversation via rainbow had bothered me all evening. "Luke said you and he go way back. He also said Grover wouldn't fail this time. Nobody would turn into a pine tree."**

**In the dim bronze light of the sword blade, it was hard to read their expressions.**

**Grover let out a mournful bray.**

**"I should've told you the truth from the beginning." His voice trembled. "I thought if you knew what a failure I was, you wouldn't want me along."**

**"You were the satyr who tried to rescue Thalia, the daughter of Zeus."**

**He nodded glumly.**

**"And the other two half-bloods Thalia befriended, the ones who got safely to camp ..." I looked at Annabeth. "That was you and Luke, wasn't it?"**

**She put down her Oreo, uneaten. "Like you said, Percy, a seven-year-old half-blood wouldn't have made it very far alone. Athena guided me toward help. Thalia was twelve. Luke was fourteen. They'd both run away from home, like me. They were happy to take me with them. They were ... amazing monster-fighters, even without training.**

Hermes and Zeus' faces filled with pride at this while Thalia blushed bright scarlet.

**We traveled north from Virginia without any real plans, fending off monsters for about two weeks before Grover found us."**

**"I was supposed to escort Thalia to camp," he said, sniffling. "Only Thalia. I had strict orders from Chiron: don't do anything that would slow down the rescue. We knew Hades was after her, see, but I couldn't just leave Luke and Annabeth by themselves. I thought ... I thought I could lead all three of them to safety. It was my fault the Kindly Ones caught up with us. I froze. I got scared on the way back to camp and took some wrong turns. If I'd just been a little quicker …"**

**"Stop it," Annabeth said. "No one blames you.**

"I… gah, Thalia, stop that!"

"Only when you stop insulting my friend!"

All the Romans stared at the girl in surprise as she continued her staring contest with her father. Either she was extremely brave or absolutely mental to take on the king of the gods. However, what he said next shocked them even more.

"Fine, I shall keep my thoughts on the satyr to myself."

**Thalia didn't blame you either."**

"No, no I don't."

**"She sacrificed herself to save us," he said miserably, "Her death was my fault. The Council of Cloven Elders said so."**

"Wait, the book just said you were dead?" Octavian demanded, turning to glare at the girl under the banner of Artemis. "How are you here?"

"She's a zombie mate, come back to eat our brains!" Connor told him in a grave voice.

"Which means that you two will be perfectly safe." Thalia smiled sweetly at the Stolls, "After all, you never had them to begin with!"

Once again, the throne room of Olympus was filled with laughter while the sons of Hermes pouted and Octavian fumed in the corner.

**"Because you wouldn't leave two other half-bloods behind?" I said. "That's not fair."**

**"Percy's right," Annabeth said. "I wouldn't be here today if it weren't for you, Grover. Neither would Luke. We don't care what the council says."**

**Grover kept sniffling in the dark. "It's just my luck. I'm the lamest satyr ever, and I find the two most powerful half-bloods of the century, Thalia and Percy."**

"And me, don't forget that you found me too!" Nico added

"So technically, he found sons of all of the big three?" Athena whistled, "He must have some really bad luck, I wonder why Nemesis hates him so much?"

"Maybe the comment earlier about her being a god?" Hestia suggested. All of the Olympians, while musing this fact, were completely oblivious to the different conversation happening amongst their children. Once again, the conflict was started by the skinny boy with the teddy bear complex.

"So you are _Greek _then Nico?"

"Well… I never said I wasn't." The son of Hades shrugged.

"Traitor!"

At this point, Percy decided to cut in, "How can he be a traitor when he never worked for you in the first place? He never told us of your camp so it's not like he's planning an invasion or anything."

At this, the Augur's eyes narrowed, but before he could press his point, Connor called out,

"Or is he? How's your army of the dammed coming Nikki?"

Nico just ignored him and waved Frank on.

**"You're not lame," Annabeth insisted. "You've got more courage than any satyr I've ever met. Name one other who would dare go to the Underworld. I bet Percy is really glad you're here right now."**

**She kicked me in the shin.**

**"Yeah," I said, which I would've done even without the kick.**

That got everyone laughing again.

**"It's not luck that you found Thalia and me, Grover. You've got the biggest heart of any satyr ever. You're a natural searcher. That's why you'll be the one who finds Pan."**

At this, Hermes' eyes lit up… _just maybe he would._

**I heard a deep, satisfied sigh. I waited for Grover to say something, but his breathing only got heavier. When the sound turned to snoring, I realized he'd fallen sleep.**

**"How does he do that?" I marveled.**

**"I don't know," Annabeth said. "But that was really a nice thing you told him."**

**"I meant it."**

**We rode in silence for a few miles, bumping around on the feed sacks. The zebra munched a turnip. The lion licked the last of the hamburger meat off his lips and looked at me hopefully.**

**Annabeth rubbed her necklace like she was thinking deep, strategic thoughts.**

**"That pine-tree bead," I said. "Is that from your first year?"**

**She looked. She hadn't realized what she was doing.**

**"Yeah," she said. "Every August, the counselors pick the most important event of the summer, and they paint it on that year's beads. I've got Thalia's pine tree, a Greek trireme on fire, a centaur in a prom dress—now that was a weird summer..."**

Katie laughed, "I remember that, it was great!"

"I still haven't got that dance!" Travis whined pouting at her.

"Maybe later."

**"And the college ring is your father's?"**

**"That's none of your—" She stopped herself. "Yeah. Yeah, it is."**

**"You don't have to tell me."**

**"No ... it's okay." She took a shaky breath. "My dad sent it to me folded up in a letter, two summers ago. The ring was, like, his main keepsake from Athena. He wouldn't have gotten through his doctoral program at Harvard without her... That's a long story. Anyway, he said he wanted me to have it. He apologized for being a jerk, said he loved me and missed me. He wanted me to come home and live with him."**

"I knew he was a good man at heart." Athena mumbled to herself.

**"That doesn't sound so bad."**

**"Yeah, well... the problem was, I believed him. I tried to go home for that school year, but my stepmom was the same as ever. She didn't want her kids put in danger by living with a freak. Monsters attacked. We argued. Monsters attacked. We argued. I didn't even make it through winter break. I called Chiron and came right back to Camp Half-Blood."**

**"You think you'll ever try living with your dad again?"**

**She wouldn't meet my eyes. "Please. I'm not into self-inflicted pain."**

**"You shouldn't give up," I told her. "You should write him a letter or something."**

**"Thanks for the advice," she said coldly, "but my father's made his choice about who he wants to live with."**

**We passed another few miles of silence.**

**"So if the gods fight," I said, "will things line up the way they did with the Trojan War? Will it be Athena versus Poseidon?"**

**She put her head against the backpack Ares had given us, and closed her eyes. "I don't know what my mom will do. I just know I'll fight next to you."**

"ANNABETH!"

"Yes mother?"

"Did you just say that you would stand with that _sea rat _instead of with me in a fight?"

"Wow mother, you do listen." Everyone in the room watched the exchange with looks of trepidation as sparks seemed to fly back and forth between the two women. Attempting to break the awkward silence this left, Frank hurriedly read on.

**"Why?"**

**"Because you're my friend, Seaweed Brain. Any more stupid questions?"**

**I couldn't think of an answer for that. Fortunately I didn't have to. Annabeth was asleep.**

**I had trouble following her example, with Grover snoring and an albino lion staring hungrily at me, but eventually I closed my eyes.**

**My nightmare started out as something I'd dreamed a million times before: I was being forced to take a standardized test while wearing a straitjacket.**

"Interesting…" Hades' eyes lit up at this and everyone began to fear that Percy's twisted nightmares were giving him ideas.

**All the other kids were going out to recess, and the teacher kept saying, Come on, Percy. You're not stupid, are you? Pick up your pencil.**

**Then the dream strayed from the usual.**

**I looked over at the next desk and saw a girl sitting there, also wearing a straitjacket. She was my age, with unruly black, punk-style hair, dark eyeliner around her stormy green eyes, and freckles across her nose. Somehow, I knew who she was. She was Thalia, daughter of Zeus.**

"How did he know that?" Thalia looked gob smacked, "He hasn't even seen a picture of me yet but he can describe me almost perfectly!"

Percy shrugged with a mischievous look on his face, "What can I say, it's a gift."

**She struggled against the straitjacket, glared at me in frustration, and snapped, "**_**Well, Seaweed Brain? One of us has to get out of here.**_**"**

"Wow Thals, he even got your personality right as well!" Annabeth commented through her giggles.

**She's right, my dream-self thought. I'm going back to that cavern. I'm going to give Hades a piece of my mind.**

"Yes, because I sure _that _is going to be a good idea." Dionysus droned, sounding completely bored.

**The straitjacket melted off me. I fell through the class room floor. The teacher's voice changed until it was cold and evil, echoing from the depths of a great chasm.**

_**Percy Jackson,**_**it said.**_**Yes, the exchange went well, I see.**_

**I was back in the dark cavern, spirits of the dead drifting around me. Unseen in the pit, the monstrous thing was speaking, but this time it wasn't addressing me. The numbing power of its voice seemed directed somewhere else.**

_**And he suspects nothing?**___**it asked.**

**Another voice, one I almost recognized, answered at my shoulder.**_**Nothing, my is as ignorant as the rest.**_

**I looked over, but no one was there. The speaker was invisible.**

_**Deception upon deception, the thing in the pit mused aloud. Excellent.**_

_**Truly, my lord,**_**said the voice next to me,**_**you are well-named the Crooked One. But was it really necessary? I could have brought you what I stole directly —**_

_**You?**_**the monster said in scorn.**___**You have already shown your limits. You would have failed me completely had I not intervened.**_

_**But, my lord—**_

_**Peace, little servant. Our six months have bought us much. Zeus's anger has grown. Poseidon has played his most desperate card. Now we shall use it against him. Shortly you shall have the reward you wish, and your revenge. As soon as both items are delivered into my hands ... but wait. He is here.**_

_**What?**___**The invisible servant suddenly sounded tense.**___**You summoned him, my lord?**_

_**No. The full force of the monsters attention was now pouring over me, freezing me in place. Blast his father's blood—**_

Poseidon grinned nervously at this. He was sure that that was a compliment, but he didn't really like his son's situation too much.

_**he is too changeable, too unpredictable. The boy brought himself hither.**_

_**Impossible!**_**the servant cried.**

_**For a weakling such as you, perhaps,**_**the voice snarled. Then its cold power turned back on me.**_**So ... you wish to dream of your quest, young half-blood? Then I will oblige.**_

**The scene changed.**

**I was standing in a vast throne room with black marble walls and bronze floors. The empty, horrid throne was made from human bones fused together. Standing at the foot of the dais was my mother, frozen in shimmering golden light, her arms outstretched.**

"That sounds like our throne room." Persephone mused.

**I tried to step toward her, but my legs wouldn't move. I reached for her, only to realize that my hands were withering to bones. Grinning skeletons in Greek armor crowded around me, draping me with silk robes, wreathing my head with laurels that smoked with Chimera poison, burning into my scalp.**

**The evil voice began to laugh.**_**Hail, the conquering hero!**_

"Hades …" Poseidon started before his older brother cut him off.

"I have already told you brother, I am not the one doing this!"

**I woke with a start.**

**Grover was shaking my shoulder. "The truck's stopped," he said. "We think they're coming to check on the animals."**

**"Hide!" Annabeth hissed.**

**She had it easy. She just put on her magic cap and disappeared.**

"you know, he does have a point." Nico pointed out, "You do have it really easy."

**Grover and I had to dive behind feed sacks and hope we looked like turnips.**

**The trailer doors creaked open. Sunlight and heat poured in.**

**"Man!" one of the truckers said, waving his hand in front of his ugly nose. "I wish I hauled appliances." He climbed inside and poured some water from a jug into the animals' dishes.**

**"You hot, big boy?" he asked the lion, then splashed the rest of the bucket right in the lion's face.**

Artemis growled low in her throat gripping the arms of her throne so hard that her knuckles went snow white.

**The lion roared in indignation.**

**"Yeah, yeah, yeah," the man said.**

**Next to me, under the turnip sacks, Grover tensed. For a peace-loving herbivore, he looked downright murderous.**

**The trucker threw the antelope a squashed-looking Happy Meal bag. He smirked at the zebra. "How ya doin', Stripes? Least we'll be getting rid of you this stop. You like magic shows? You're gonna love this one. They're gonna saw you in half!"**

The atmosphere around the moon goddess was beginning to scare everyone now. Timidly, Apollo went over to his sister and tried to calm her down.

**The zebra, wild-eyed with fear, looked straight at me.**

**There was no sound, but as clear as day, I heard it say: Free me, lord. Please.**

"And here comes Percy the horse whisperer!" Connor cheered.

"Does this mean that, every time you've talked to a horse in front of us, now we get to hear what it said?" Annabeth looked hopeful as she said this, but her boyfriend just shrugged.

"Possibly."

**I was too stunned to react.**

**There was a loud knock, knock, knock on the side of the trailer.**

**The trucker inside with us yelled, "What do you want, Eddie?"**

**A voice outside—it must've been Eddie's—shouted back, "Maurice? What'd ya say?"**

**"What are you banging for?"**

**Knock, knock, knock.**

**Outside, Eddie yelled, "What banging?"**

"Genius!" Thalia cheered, slapping Annabeth on the back.

**Our guy Maurice rolled his eyes and went back outside, cursing at Eddie for being an idiot.**

**A second later, Annabeth appeared next to me. She must've done the banging to get Maurice out of the trailer. She said, "This transport business can't be legal."**

**"No kidding," Grover said. He paused, as if listening. "The lion says these guys are animal smugglers!"**

**That's right, the zebra's voice said in my mind.**

**"We've got to free them!" Grover said. He and Annabeth both looked at me, waiting for my lead.**

**I'd heard the zebra talk, but not the lion. Why? Maybe it was another learning disability ... I could only understand zebras? Then I thought: horses. What had Annabeth said about Poseidon creating horses? Was a zebra close enough to a horse? Was that why I could understand it?**

"Yes" Poseidon stated happily.

"Man, I wish I had that power!" Leo whined.

"Says the man who can set himself on fire?" Jason reminded him.

"But still…"

**The zebra said, Open my cage, lord. Please. I'll be fine after that.**

**Outside, Eddie and Maurice were still yelling at each other, but I knew they'd be coming inside to torment the animals again any minute. I grabbed Riptide and slashed the lock off the zebra's cage.**

**The zebra burst out. It turned to me and bowed. Thank you, lord.**

**Grover held up his hands and said something to the zebra in goat talk, like a blessing.**

**Just as Maurice was poking his head back inside to check out the noise, the zebra leaped over him and into the street. There was yelling and screaming and cars honking. We rushed to the doors of the trailer in time to see the zebra galloping down a wide boulevard lined with hotels and casinos and neon signs. We'd just released a zebra in Las Vegas.**

"Oooh, I so wish I was there!" Hermes grinned.

**Maurice and Eddie ran after it, with a few policemen running after them, shouting, "Hey! You need a permit for that!"**

**"Now would be a good time to leave," Annabeth said.**

**"The other animals first," Grover said.**

**I cut the locks with my sword. Grover raised his hands and spoke the same goat-blessing he'd used for the zebra.**

**"Good luck," I told the animals. The antelope and the lion burst out of their cages and went off together into the streets.**

**Some tourists screamed. Most just backed off and took pictures, probably thinking it was some kind of stunt by one of the casinos.**

**"Will the animals be okay?" I asked Grover. "I mean, the desert and all—"**

**"Don't worry," he said. "I placed a satyr's sanctuary on them."**

**"Meaning?"**

**"Meaning they'll reach the wild safely," he said. "They'll find water, food, shade, whatever they need until they find a safe place to live."**

**"Why can't you place a blessing like that on us?" I asked.**

**"It only works on wild animals."**

**"So it would only affect Percy," Annabeth reasoned.**

This set everyone off laughing again.

**"Hey!" I protested.**

**"Kidding," she said. "Come on. Let's get out of this filthy truck."**

**We stumbled out into the desert afternoon. It was a hundred and ten degrees, easy, and we must've looked like deep-fried vagrants, but everybody was too interested in the wild animals to pay us much attention.**

**We passed the Monte Carlo and the MGM. We passed pyramids, a pirate ship, and the Statue of Liberty, which was a pretty small replica, but still made me homesick.**

**I wasn't sure what we were looking for. Maybe just a place to get out of the heat for a few minutes, find a sandwich and a glass of lemonade, make a new plan for getting west.**

**We must have taken a wrong turn, because we found ourselves at a dead end, standing in front of the Lotus Hotel and Casino.**

Nico shuddered "I hate that place!"

**The entrance was a huge neon flower, the petals lighting up and blinking. No one was going in or out, but the glittering chrome doors were open, spilling out air-conditioning that smelled like flowers—lotus blossom, maybe. I'd never smelled one, so I wasn't sure.**

**The doorman smiled at us. "Hey, kids. You look tired. You want to come in and sit down?"**

**I'd learned to be suspicious, the last week or so. I figured anybody might be a monster or a god. You just couldn't tell. But this guy was normal. One look at him, and I could see. Besides, I was so relieved to hear somebody who sounded sympathetic that I nodded and said we'd love to come in.**

**Inside, we took one look around, and Grover said, "Whoa."**

**The whole lobby was a giant game room. And I'm not talking about cheesy old Pac-Man games or slot machines. There was an indoor waterslide snaking around the glass elevator, which went straight up at least forty floors. There was a climbing wall on the side of one building, and an indoor bungee-jumping bridge. There were virtual-reality suits with working laser guns. And hundreds of video games, each one the size of a widescreen TV. Basically, you name it, this place had it. There were a few other kids playing, but not that many. No waiting for any of the games. There were waitresses and snack bars all around, serving every kind of food you can imagine.**

**"Hey!" a bellhop said. At least I guessed he was a bellhop. He wore a white-and-yellow Hawaiian shirt with lotus designs, shorts, and flip-flops. "Welcome to the Lotus Casino. Here's your room key."**

**I stammered, "Um, but..."**

**"No, no," he said, laughing. "The bill's taken care of. No extra charges, no tips. Just go on up to the top floor, loom 4001. If you need anything, like extra bubbles for the hot tub, or skeet targets for the shooting range, or whatever, just call the front desk. Here are your Lotus Cash cards. They work in the restaurants and on all the games and rides."**

**He handed us each a green plastic credit card.**

**I knew there must be some mistake. Obviously he thought we were some millionaire's kids. But I took the card and said, "How much is on here?"**

**His eyebrows knit together. "What do you mean?"**

**"I mean, when does it run out of cash?"**

**He laughed. "Oh, you're making a joke. Hey, that's cool. Enjoy your stay."**

"Yes, because this place isn't suspicious!" Dionysus griped. He had been rather vocal this chapter which proved that he was worried for them.

**We took the elevator upstairs and checked out our room. It was a suite with three separate bedrooms and a bar stocked with candy, sodas, and chips. A hotline to room service. Fluffy towels and water beds with feather pillows. A big-screen television with satellite and high-speed Internet. The balcony had its own hot tub, and sure enough, there was a skeet-shooting machine and a shotgun, so you could launch clay pigeons right out over the Las Vegas skyline and plug them with your gun. I didn't see how that could be legal, but I thought it was pretty cool. The view over the Strip and the desert was amazing, though I doubted we'd ever find time to look at the view with a room like this.**

**"Oh, goodness," Annabeth said. "This place is ..."**

**"Sweet," Grover said. "Absolutely sweet."**

**There were clothes in the closet, and they fit me. I frowned, thinking that this was a little strange.**

**I threw Ares's backpack in the trash can. Wouldn't need that anymore. When we left, I could just charge a new one at the hotel store.**

**I took a shower, which felt awesome after a week of grimy travel. I changed clothes, ate a bag of chips, drank three Cokes, and came out feeling better than I had in a long time. In the back of my mind, some small problem kept nagging me. I'd had a dream or something ... I needed to talk to my friends. But I was sure it could wait.**

**I came out of the bedroom and found that Annabeth and Grover had also showered and changed clothes. Grover was eating potato chips to his heart's content, while Annabeth cranked up the National Geographic Channel.**

**"All those stations," I told her, "and you turn on National Geographic. Are you insane?"**

**"It's interesting."**

**"I feel good," Grover said. "I love this place."**

**Without his even realizing it, the wings sprouted out of his shoes and lifted him a foot off the ground, then back down again.**

**"So what now?" Annabeth asked. "Sleep?"**

**Grover and I looked at each other and grinned. We both held up our green plastic Lotus Cash cards.**

**"Play time," I said.**

"YES!" Hermes yelled at the same time as his sons making the whole room laugh.

**I couldn't remember the last time I had so much fun. I came from a relatively poor family. Our idea of a splurge was eating out at Burger King and renting a video. A five-star Vegas hotel? Forget it.**

Poseidon sighed. If only Sally had accepted his offer to come and live with him.

**I bungee-jumped the lobby five or six times, did the waterslide, snowboarded the artificial ski slope, and played virtual-reality laser tag and FBI sharpshooter. I saw Grover a few times, going from game to game. He really liked the reverse hunter thing—where the deer go out and shoot the rednecks.**

**I saw Annabeth playing trivia games and other brainiac stuff. They had this huge 3-D Sim game where you build your own city, and you could actually see the holographic buildings rise on the display board. I didn't think much of it, but Annabeth loved it.**

**I'm not sure when I first realized something was wrong.**

**Probably, it was when I noticed the guy standing next to me at VR sharpshooters. He was about thirteen, I guess, but his clothes were weird. I thought he was some Elvis impersonator's son. He wore bell-bottom jeans and a red T-shirt with black piping, and his hair was permed and gelled like a New Jersey girl's on homecoming night.**

"And you know that because…" Will raised his eyebrow at Percy as everyone else laughed at the simile.

**We played a game of sharpshooters together and he said, "Groovy, man. Been here two weeks, and the games keep getting better and better."**

**Groovy?**

**Later, while we were talking, I said something was "sick," and he looked at me kind of startled, as if he'd never heard the word used that way before.**

**He said his name was Darrin, but as soon as I started asking him questions he got bored with me and started to go back to the computer screen.**

**I said, "Hey, Darrin?"**

**"What?"**

**"What year is it?"**

**He frowned at me. "In the game?"**

**"No. In real life."**

**He had to think about it. "1977."**

"What?" Kati said, leaning around to see Frank clearly. He checked the book again.

"It says 1977."

**"No," I said, getting a little scared. "Really."**

**"Hey, man. Bad vibes. I got a game happening."**

**After that he totally ignored me.**

**I started talking to people, and I found it wasn't easy. They were glued to the TV screen, or the video game, or their food, or whatever. I found a guy who told me it was 1985. Another guy told me it was 1993. They all claimed they hadn't been in here very long, a few days, a few weeks at most. They didn't really know and they didn't care.**

**Then it occurred to me: how long had I been here? It seemed like only a couple of hours, but was it?**

**I tried to remember why we were here. We were going to Los Angeles. We were supposed to find the entrance to the Underworld. My mother ... for a scary second, I had trouble remembering her name. Sally. Sally Jackson. I had to find her. I had to stop Hades from causing World War III.**

"It's not me!" Hades whined, hiding his head in his wife's neck, making Demeter shudder.

**I found Annabeth still building her city.**

**"Come on," I told her. "We've got to get out of here."**

**No response.**

**I shook her. "Annabeth?"**

**She looked up, annoyed. "What?**

**"We need to leave."**

**"Leave? What are you talking about? I've just got the towers—"**

**"This place is a trap."**

"I still can't believe you figured it out before me seaweed brain!" She told him looking amused when he shrugged and said,

"Me either."

**She didn't respond until I shook her again. "What?"**

**"Listen. The Underworld. Our quest!"**

**"Oh, come on, Percy. Just a few more minutes."**

**"Annabeth, there are people here from 1977. Kids who have never aged. You check in, and you stay forever."**

**"So?" she asked. "Can you imagine a better place?"**

**I grabbed her wrist and yanked her away from the game.**

**"Hey!" She screamed and hit me, but nobody else even bothered looking at us. They were too busy.**

**I made her look directly in my eyes. I said, "Spiders. Large, hairy spiders."**

Annabeth and Athena shuddered at this.

**That jarred her. Her vision cleared. "Oh my gods," she said. "How long have we—"**

**"I don't know, but we've got to find Grover."**

**We went searching, and found him still playing Virtual Deer Hunter.**

**"Grover!" we both shouted.**

**He said, "Die, human! Die, silly polluting nasty person!"**

Artemis laughed lightly. "I'm beginning to like that goat!"

Apollo gasped, falling on the floor. "But sis, he's a _boy."_

Artemis ignored him… mostly anyway. She did, however, manage to get a good kick to his face in before he regained his feet.

**"Grover!"**

**He turned the plastic gun on me and started clicking, as if I were just another image from the screen.**

**I looked at Annabeth, and together we took Grover by the arms and dragged him away. His flying shoes sprang to life and started tugging his legs in the other direction as he shouted, "No! I just got to a new level! No!"**

**The Lotus bellhop hurried up to us. "Well, now, are you ready for your platinum cards?"**

**"We're leaving," I told him.**

**"Such a shame," he said, and I got the feeling that he really meant it, that we'd be breaking his heart if we went. "We just added an entire new floor full of games for platinum-card members."**

**He held out the cards, and I wanted one. I knew that if I took one, I'd never leave. I'd stay here, happy forever, playing games forever, and soon I'd forget my mom, and my quest, and maybe even my own name. I'd be playing virtual rifleman with groovy Disco Darrin forever.**

**Grover reached for the card, but Annabeth yanked back his arm and said, "No, thanks."**

**We walked toward the door, and as we did, the smell of the food and the sounds of the games seemed to get more and more inviting. I thought about our room upstairs. We could just stay the night, sleep in a real bed for once...**

**Then we burst through the doors of the Lotus Casino and ran down the sidewalk. It felt like afternoon, about the same time of day we'd gone into the casino, but something was wrong. The weather had completely changed. It was stormy, with heat lightning flashing out in the desert.**

**Ares's backpack was slung over my shoulder, which was odd, because I was sure I had thrown it in the trash can in room 4001, but at the moment I had other problems to worry about.**

**I ran to the nearest newspaper stand and read the year first. Thank the gods, it was the same year it had been when we went in. Then I noticed the date: June twentieth.**

**We had been in the Lotus Casino for five days.**

**We had only one day left until the summer solstice. One day to complete our quest.**

"What did I say about tempting fate?" Nico called out, sounding a little smug.

Ignoring him, Percy turned to Frank, "Who's next?"

However, before the other boy could open his mouth, yet another flash filled the room and another chair appeared.


	19. We Shop For Water Beds

After the flash, even before the smoke had begun clearing, Nico was on his feet and moving. Eventually, the new form was visible for about 2.1 seconds before he pulled her into a hung.

"Hazel."

"Nico!"

For a while, the siblings hugged in the centre of the room until Zeus got bored and cleared his throat, making the son of Hades step back red faced. Without missing a beat, the new girl turned and bowed to the gods.

"Hazel Lavesque, daughter of Pluto… Resurrected." She added the last bit after seeing the glares aimed at her father and some of the hostility faded from the faces of the gods. The two of them then went back to their respective seats, (Hazel stopping to kiss Frank on the way, something that made Nico scowl at the floor and Aphrodite's eyes gleam.)

She then took the book, and, before anyone could interrupt, began reading.

"**We Shop For Water Beds,"**

"I love water beds." Poseidon sighed happily.

"yeah, great for pranks!" Apollo's eyes flashed wickedly at the thought.

**It was Annabeth's idea.**

"Thanks for that Seaweed brain!" She rolled her eyes at him before leaning towards his face. All the other demigods were glad that her hair acted like a curtain at that moment.

**She loaded us into the back of a Vegas taxi as if we actually had money, and told the driver, "Los Angeles, please."**

**The cabbie chewed his cigar and sized us up. "That's three hundred miles. For that, you gotta pay up front."**

**"You accept casino****debit cards?" Annabeth asked.**

**He shrugged. "Some of 'em. Same as credit cards. I gotta swipe 'em through first."**

**Annabeth handed him her green LotusCash card.**

"Is that even going to work?" Rachel asked the book.

**He looked at it skeptically.**

**"Swipe it," Annabeth invited.**

**He did.**

**His meter machine started rattling. The lights flashed. Finally an infinity symbol came up next to the dollar sign.**

The Stolls immediately turned to the couple. "Please tell me that you kept one of those cards…" Travis moaned.

"And that you were saving it for our birthday present." Connor finished putting on a puppy dog face that soon disappeared when the others shook their heads.

**The cigar fell out of the driver's mouth. He looked back at us, his eyes wide. "Where to in Los Angeles... uh, Your Highness?"**

This got a laugh and Percy leaned closer to Thalia, "You should have seen her face!"

**"The Santa Monica Pier." Annabeth sat up a little straighter. I could tell she liked the "Your Highness" thing. "Get us there fast, and you can keep the change."**

"Well, you couldn't exactly have taken the change could you?" Demeter reasoned over the spluttered protest of Hermes, Apollo and their children.

**Maybe she shouldn't have told him that. The cab's speedometer never dipped below ninety-five the whole way through the Mojave Desert.**

"Oh, that wasn't really safe." Hestia added, looking between the two of them worriedly.

**On the road, we had plenty of time to talk. I told Annabeth and Grover about my latest dream, but the details got sketchier the more I tried to remember them. The Lotus Casino seemed to have short-circuited my memory.**

Nico flinched, "Yeah, it does tend to have that effect on people."

At this, all the Romans peered at him in confusion, wondering when he had ever been in that place. Not feeling like explaining the whole story, he simply waved his sister on and shot a dark look at his father.

**I couldn't recall what the invisible servant's voice had sounded like, though I was sure it was somebody I knew. The servant had called the monster in the pit something other than "my lord" ... some special name or title...**

**"The Silent One?" Annabeth suggested. "The Rich One? Both of those are nicknames for Hades."**

"HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO SAY THAT IT ISN'T ME YOU INSOLENT GIRL!" Hades exploded, shooting daggers at where Annabeth tried to hide behind Percy.

"S-sorry Lord H-Hades." She managed to stutter out.

"Brother, calm down. The girl was 12 and everyone makes mistakes occasionally."

"Yes my Lord, I am sure that they set the matter straight in time."

Persephone and Hestia were on either side of him now, laying soothing hands on his arm and talking in low voices as though they were speaking to a wild animal. Eventually, he calmed down enough to motion for his daughter to continue.

**"Maybe ..." I said, though neither sounded quite right.**

"Because it's not me!" Hades called again, though this time it was closer to a whine than a roar.

**"That throne room sounds like Hades's," Grover said. "That's the way it's usually described."**

"Well, that was our throne room." Persephone reasoned, leaning up to peck him on the cheek.

**I shook my head. "Something's wrong. The throne room wasn't the main part of the dream. And that voice from the pit ... I don't know. It just didn't feel like a god's voice."**

"Thank you for that nephew." Hades called across the room. To this, Percy just grinned.

"No problem uncle."

**Annabeth's eyes widened.**

"Oh, so _now _she figures it out." Octavian huffed, but everyone decided to ignore him.

**"What?" I asked.**

**"Oh ... nothing. I was just—No, it**_**has**___**to be Hades. Maybe he sent this thief, this invisible person, to get the master bolt, and something went wrong—"**

"I really am sorry Lord Hades, but you must realize why I want it to be you right?" Annabeth said, a pleading look in her eyes as she peered out from under her fringe at him.

Finally, the Lord of the dead sighed, he couldn't argue with that, even _he _would have preferred it to have been him.

**"Like what?"**

**"I—I don't know," she said. "But if he stole Zeus's symbol of power from Olympus, and the gods were hunting him, I mean, a lot of things could go wrong. So this thief had to hide the bolt, or he lost it somehow. Anyway, he failed to bring it to Hades. That's what the voice said in your dream, right? The guy failed. That would explain what the Furies were searching for when they came after us on the bus. Maybe they thought we had retrieved the bolt."**

**I wasn't sure what was wrong with her. She looked pale.**

"Oh, I don't know why that would be." Leo joked rolling her eyes, "She just found out that _the _strongest and most evil titan of all time was trying to start a civil war between the gods, I don't see why that would be upsetting at all!"

"Jeez Leo, we get it!" Percy responded, pulling his girlfriend closer again.

**"But if I'd already retrieved the bolt," I said, "why would I be traveling to the Underworld?"**

**"To threaten Hades," Grover suggested. "To bribe or blackmail him into getting your mom back."**

"That could actually have been the case… you know, if you actually had the bolt." Piper admitted before she flinched, remembering what she had almost done for her father and the cost that would have had on everyone.

**I whistled. "You have evil thoughts for a goat."**

**"Why, thank you."**

**"But the thing in the pit said it was waiting for**_**two**___**items," I said. "If the master bolt is one, what's the other?"**

**Grover shook his head, clearly mystified.**

**Annabeth was looking at me as if she knew my next question, and was silently willing me not to ask it.**

**"You have an idea what might be in that pit, don't you?" I asked her. "I mean, if it isn't Hades?"**

"Honestly Seaweed brain, how did you not realize by that point?" She said the words mockingly but the look on Annabeth's face was so adoring that the criticism had no weight at all.

He leaned closer so that she was the only one who heard him say, "Maybe I was too distracted by you."

**"Percy ... let's not talk about it. Because if it isn't Hades ... No. It has to be Hades."**

"No it isn't but I so wish it was… no offence dad, but Kronos was scary." Nico shuddered while all the gods looked at him in surprise.

"You've met Kronos?" Athena asked, shock colouring her words.

Thalia shot a warning glance at her cousin before clouting him over the head. "Ignore the little creep lady Athena, his mouth say's things before his brain catches up to it."

**Wasteland rolled by. We passed a sign that said CALIFORNIA STATE LINE, 12 MILES.**

**I got the feeling I was missing one simple, critical piece of information. It was like when I stared at a common word I should know, but I couldn't make sense of it because one or two letters were floating around. The more I thought about my quest, the more I was sure that confronting Hades wasn't the real answer. There was something else going on, something even more dangerous.**

"But you still went and confronted him anyway didn't you son." Poseidon groaned as Percy's grin turned guilty.

**The problem was: we were hurtling toward the Underworld at ninety-five miles an hour, betting that Hades had the master bolt. If we got there and found out we were wrong, we wouldn't have time to correct ourselves. The solstice deadline would pass and war would begin.**

Ares started smiling at this, making all the demigods uneasy.

**"The answer is in the Underworld," Annabeth assured me. "You saw spirits of the dead, Percy. There's only one place that could be. We're doing the right thing."**

**She tried to boost our morale by suggesting clever strategies for getting into the Land of the Dead, but my heart wasn't in it. There were just too many unknown factors. It was like cramming for a test without knowing the subject. And believe me, I'd done**_**that**___**enough times.**

"_How_ is that even possible?" Katie turned to look at him while Jason slapped him on the back going.

"Great work Percy!"

**The cab sped west. Every gust of wind through Death Valley sounded like a spirit of the dead. Every time the brakes hissed on an eighteen-wheeler, it reminded me of Echidna's reptilian voice.**

"Are you guys always this paranoid when you're in the outside world?" Rachel asked, looking a little shocked. Will just sighed.

"When you're a half-blood, you kinda have to be." All the others nodded at this looking tired.

**At sunset, the taxi dropped us at the beach in Santa Monica. It looked exactly the way L.A. beaches do in the movies, only it smelled worse.**

**There were carnival rides lining the Pier, palm trees lining the sidewalks, homeless guys sleeping in the sand dunes, and surfer dudes waiting for the perfect wave.**

**Grover, Annabeth, and I walked down to the edge of the surf.**

**"What now?" Annabeth asked.**

"Now, you go and say hello to me!" Poseidon cheered happily.

"Yay, daddy time!" Baby Percy sheered, clapping his hands and making everyone else laugh.

**The Pacific was turning gold in the setting sun. I thought about how long it had been since I'd stood on the beach at Montauk, on the opposite side of the country, looking out at a different sea.**

**How could there be a god who could control all that? What did my science teacher used to say—two-thirds of the earth's surface was covered in water? How could I be the son of someone that powerful?**

This made all of the other Olympians groan.

"Don't say that," Hephaestus sighed, "You're just going to give him an even bigger head!"

Thalia grinned and turned to Nico, "I guess that's where Percy gets it from then!"

**I stepped into the surf.**

**"Percy?" Annabeth said. "What are you doing?"**

"Going to go talk to my dad, duh. Honestly Annabeth, I thought you were meant to me smart!" Percy teased her, getting a slap in the face for his efforts.

**I kept walking, up to my waist, then my chest.**

**She called after me, "You know how polluted that water is? There're all kinds of toxic—"**

**That's when my head went under.**

"So that's how you shut her up." Thalia grinned, "I've been trying to do that for years!"

**I held my breath at first. It's difficult to intentionally inhale water. Finally I couldn't stand it anymore. I gasped. Sure enough, I could breathe normally.**

"Stupid sea spawns scared of the water!" Athena snickered, earning herself a glare from her daughter.

**I walked down into the shoals. I shouldn't have been able to see through the murk, but somehow I could tell where everything was. I could sense the rolling texture of the bottom. I could make out sand-dollar colonies dotting the sandbars. I could even see the currents, warm and cold streams swirling together.**

**I felt something rub against my leg. I looked down and almost shot out of the water like a ballistic missile. Sliding along beside me was a five-foot-long mako shark.**

"How did you know what kind of shark it was?" Reyna asked him curiously, however, before he could answer, Annabeth cut her boyfriend off.

"Trust me, never ask him about that kind of thing, he is like an encyclopedia when it has anything to do with water." She warned causing everyone else to laugh.

"Well, not you know how the rest of us feel!" Frank cheered, thinking about the time with the Chinese handcuffs. This comment however, made Annabeth confused, she was pretty sure that she had never seen this guy before in her life, but if so, why was he acting as though he knew her so well?

**But the thing wasn't attacking. It was nuzzling me. Heeling like a dog.**

"Again, you get all the cool powers!" Nico complained.

"And I still say that you shouldn't say that when you can summon the dead using happy meals!" Percy countered.

**Tentatively, I touched its dorsal fin. It bucked a little, as if inviting me to hold tighter. I grabbed the fin with both hands. It took off, pulling me along. The shark carried me down into the darkness. It deposited me at the edge of the ocean proper, where the sand bank dropped off into a huge chasm. It was like standing on the rim of the Grand Canyon at midnight, not being able to see much, but knowing the void was right there.**

**The surface shimmered maybe a hundred and fifty feet above. I knew I should've been crushed by the pressure. Then again, I shouldn't have been able to breathe. I wondered if there was a limit to how deep I could go, if I could sink straight to the bottom of the Pacific.**

"You can, it's one of the perks of being my son." Poseidon told him happily.

**Then I saw something glimmering in the darkness below, growing bigger and brighter as it rose toward me. A woman's voice, like my mother's, called: "Percy Jackson."**

"Aww so it's now me then?" Poseidon pouted.

"You never know uncle P, your son might just think you have a very girly voice!" Apollo told him helpfully, before he got a shower in the red sea that is.

**As she got closer, her shape became clearer. She had flowing black hair, a dress made of green silk. Light flickered around her, and her eyes were so distractingly beautiful I hardly noticed the stallion-sized sea horse she was riding.**

**She dismounted. The sea horse and the mako shark whisked off and started playing something that looked like tag.**

All the goddesses in the room "awwwed" at this.

**The underwater lady smiled at me. "You've come far, Percy Jackson. Well done."**

**I wasn't quite sure what to do, so I bowed. "You're the woman who spoke to me in the Mississippi River."**

"well no Perce, she's Mrs Dodds come for another crack at you." Travis joked.

**"Yes, child. I am a Nereid, a spirit of the sea. It was not easy to appear so far upriver, but the naiads, my freshwater cousins, helped sustain my life force. They honor Lord Poseidon, though they do not serve in his court."**

**"And ... you serve in Poseidon's court?"**

**She nodded. "It has been many years since a child of the Sea God has been born. We have watched you with great interest."**

**Suddenly I remembered faces in the waves off Montauk Beach when I was a little boy, reflections of smiling women. Like so many of the weird things in my life, I'd never given it much thought before.**

"Seriously, something _that _cool happens to you and you don't even think that it is important?" Rachel but in sounding completely awed by her friends stupidity, while Percy just shrugged.

"It's a demigod thing."

**"If my father is so interested in me," I said, "why isn't he here? Why doesn't he speak to me?"**

"I want to go see my son." Poseidon whined.

"Why? I'm right here!" Percy told him, making his dad smile.

"Do you want to come sit on my knee too Percy, make up for lost time?"

The son of the sea god went bright red and when he spoke again, he had to make himself heard over the laughter of his friends.

"No thanks dad, I think one of me on your throne is enough!"

**A cold current rose out of the depths.**

**"Do not judge the Lord of the Sea too harshly," the Nereid told me. "He stands at the brink of an unwanted war. He has much to occupy his time. Besides, he is forbidden to help you directly. The gods may not show such favoritism."**

**"Even to their own children?"**

**"Especially to them. The gods can work by indirect influence only. That is why I give you a warning, and a gift."**

**She held out her hand. Three white pearls flashed in her palm.**

**"I know you journey to Hades's realm," she said. "Few mortals have ever done this and survived: Orpheus, who had great music skill; Hercules, who had great strength; Houdini, who could escape even the depths of Tartarus. Do you have these talents?"**

"Um if being super annoying counts then yes, yes he does." Travis stated.

"Well, if that was all it took to be able to return from the underworld alive, then you 2 would never die!" A smirking Thalia explained to them.

**"Urn ... no, ma'am."**

**"Ah, but you have something else, Percy. You have gifts you have only begun to know. The oracles have foretold a great and terrible future for you, should you survive to manhood.** **Poseidon would not have you die before your time. Therefore take these, and when you are in need, smash a pearl at your feet."**

**"What will happen?"**

**"That," she said, "depends on the need. But remember: what belongs to the sea will always return to the sea."**

**"What about the warning?"**

"Yes because she is going to warn you about her own gifts." Piper rolled her eyes and leaned across to Leo, "You might have competition over the ruler of your kingdom Leo!"

"NOOOOOO Leo world is MIIIIINE!"

**Her eyes flickered with green light. "Go with what your heart tells you, or you will lose all. Hades feeds on doubt and hopelessness. He will trick you if he can, make you mistrust your own judgment. Once you are in his realm, he will never willingly let you leave.**

"I'm surprised you didn't get angry at that brother." Hera laughed, "looks like your wife really is a calming influence on you."

Persephone beamed at the compliment while Hades just shrugged, "I can't get angry with the woman for telling the truth now can I?"

**Keep faith. Good luck, Percy Jackson."**

**She summoned her sea horse and rode toward the void.**

**"Wait!" I called. "At the river, you said not to trust the gifts. What gifts?"**

**"Good-bye, young hero," she called back, her voice fading into the depths. "You must listen to your heart." She became a speck of glowing green, and then she was gone.**

**I wanted to follow her down into the darkness. I wanted to see the court of Poseidon.**

"We could go there now?" Poseidon said hopefully.

"NO, the two of you are not going anywhere!" Zeus decreed. "I want to finish this blasted book at some point!"

"Kill joy!"

**But I looked up at the sunset darkening on the surface. My friends were waiting. We had so little time...**

**I kicked upward toward the shore.**

**When I reached the beach, my clothes dried instantly. I told Grover and Annabeth what had happened, and showed them the pearls.**

**Annabeth grimaced. "No gift comes without a price."**

"And clearing my name is not a price?" Poseidon asked her, an amused light in his eyes.

"You know… I never really thought of that." She conceded. "I think I was over thinking things."

**"They were free."**

**"No." She shook her head. "'There is no such thing as a free lunch.' That's an ancient Greek saying that translated pretty well into American. There will be a price. You wait."**

**On that happy thought, we turned our backs on the sea.**

"Aww, poor uncle P, your son is leaving you. He must hate your guts!" Hermes cracked up when he said this, causing all the other gods to laugh but all the Greek demigods looked at each other uneasily, if only he knew…

**With some spare change from Ares's backpack, we took the bus into West Hollywood. I showed the driver the Underworld address slip I'd taken from Aunty Em's Garden Gnome Emporium, but he'd never heard of DOA Recording Studios.**

**"You remind me of somebody I saw on TV," he told me. "You a child actor or something?"**

**"Uh ... I'm a stunt double ... for a lot of child actors."**

**"Oh! That explains it."**

"Stupid humans." Apollo snickered.

"HEY!"

"Oh, no, you're an epic human as you host my oracle so that didn't apply to you!" He corrected himself hastily.

"Better."

**We thanked him and got off quickly at the next stop.**

"Noooo, running away just makes you seem more suspicious!" Hermes whined while his sons sat there nodding.

**We wandered for miles on foot, looking for DOA. Nobody seemed to know where it was. It didn't appear in the phone book.**

"Yes, because I'm going to put the entrance to my domain where people can easily find it." Hades rolled his eyes.

**Twice, we ducked into alleys to avoid cop cars.**

**I froze in front of an appliance-store window because a television was playing an interview with somebody who looked very familiar—my stepdad, Smelly Gabe. He was talking to Barbara Walters—I mean, as if he were some kind of huge celebrity. She was interviewing him in our apartment, in the middle of a poker game, and there was a young blond lady sitting next to him, patting his hand.**

"Please tell me this is a joke!" Poseidon growled.

"Nope." Percy added sounding just as dangerous as his father, well, that was until Annabeth leaned down and kissed him again.

**A fake tear glistened on his cheek. He was saying, "Honest, Ms. Walters, if it wasn't for Sugar here, my grief counselor, I'd be a wreck. My stepson took everything I cared about. My wife ... my Camaro ... I—I'm sorry. I have trouble talking about it."**

"So he gets _pampered _and convinces the nation that you're a fugitive?" Demeter asked Percy, her eyes glinting with an evil light as he nodded.

Nico leaned over to Percy and whispered, "Just let me know when he gets to the underworld and I will asked to be on the panel of judges, along with Hazel and my dad." Causing them both to grin darkly at each other.

**"There you have it, America." Barbara Walters turned to the camera. "A man torn apart. An adolescent boy with serious issues. Let me show you, again, the last known photo of this troubled young fugitive, taken a week ago in Denver."**

**The screen cut to a grainy shot of me, Annabeth, and Grover standing outside the Colorado diner, talking to Ares.**

**"Who are the other children in this photo?" Barbara Walters asked dramatically. "Who is the man with them? Is Percy Jackson a delinquent, a terrorist, or perhaps the brainwashed victim of a frightening new cult?**

"Yes, because I really want those brats working for me." Ares glowered at the book in Hazel's hands.

**When we come back, we chat with a leading child psychologist. Stay tuned, America."**

**"C'mon," Grover told me. He hauled me away before I could punch a hole in the appliance-store window.**

"I knew you would be thinking that, which is why I pulled you away."Annabeth informed him.

"Thanks for that."

"No problem."

**It got dark, and hungry-looking characters started coming out on the streets to play. Now, don't get me wrong. I'm a New Yorker. I don't scare easy. But L.A. had a totally different feel from New York. Back home, everything seemed close. It didn't matter how big the city was, you could get anywhere without getting lost. The street pattern and the subway made sense. There was a system to how things worked. A kid could be safe as long as he wasn't stupid.**

**L.A. wasn't like that. It was spread out, chaotic, hard to move around. It reminded me of Ares. It wasn't enough for L.A. to be big; it had to prove it was big by being loud and strange and difficult to navigate, too.**

"HEY! Why would I have to prove anything?" Ares protested.

"Oh, don't worry sweetie, you don't have to prove anything." Hera's comment had a wide range of effects, from making the war god grin like an idiot to causing the throne room to once again fill with laughter and the sound of Clarisse slamming her head against her chair.

**I didn't know how we were ever going to find the entrance to the Underworld by tomorrow, the summer solstice.**

**We walked past gangbangers, bums, and street hawkers, who looked at us like they were trying to figure if we were worth the trouble of mugging.**

**As we hurried passed the entrance of an alley, a voice from the darkness said, "Hey, you."**

**Like an idiot, I stopped.**

**Before I knew it, we were surrounded. A gang of kids had circled us. Six of them in all—white kids with expensive clothes and mean faces. Like the kids at Yancy Academy: rich brats playing at being bad boys.**

**Instinctively, I uncapped Riptide.**

"That's going to work as well on them as it did on me!" Rachel informed him, rolling her eyes. Percy just smiled sheepishly at her.

"Sorry about that by the way."

"No worries, it didn't hurt."

**When the sword appeared out of nowhere, the kids backed off, but their leader was either really stupid or really brave, because he kept coming at me with a switchblade.**

**I made the mistake of swinging.**

**The kid yelped. But he must've been one hundred per cent mortal, because the blade passed harmlessly right through his chest. He looked down. "What the ..."**

**I figured I had about three seconds before his shock turned to anger. "Run!" I screamed at Annabeth and Grover.**

**We pushed two kids out of the way and raced down the street, not knowing where we were going. We turned a sharp corner.**

**"There!" Annabeth shouted.**

**Only one store on the block looked open, its windows glaring with neon. The sign above the door said something like CRSTUY'S WATRE BDE ALPACE.**

**"Crusty's Water Bed Palace?" Grover translated.**

"Crusty?" Even as she said the word, the gears were turning in Athena's head as she considered this new threat.

**It didn't sound like a place I'd ever go except in an emergency, but this definitely qualified.**

**We burst through the doors, ran behind a water bed, and ducked. A split second later, the gang kids ran past outside.**

**"I think we lost them," Grover panted.**

**A voice behind us boomed, "Lost who?"**

**We all jumped.**

**Standing behind us was a guy who looked like a raptor in a leisure suit.**

Suddenly, the wisdom goddess shot straight up in her chair and one word hissed from her lips. "Procrustes!"

**He was at least seven feet tall, with absolutely no hair. He had gray, leathery skin, thick-lidded eyes, and a cold, reptilian smile. He moved toward us slowly, but I got the feeling he could move fast if he needed to.**

**His suit might've come from the Lotus Casino. It belonged back in the seventies, big-time. The shirt was silk paisley, unbuttoned halfway down his hairless chest. The lapels on his velvet jacket were as wide as landing strips. The silver chains around his neck—I couldn't even count them.**

"Ugh, I need to go do something about that!" Aphrodite said to herself, shuddering delicately at the mental image.

**"I'm Crusty," he said, with a tartar-yellow smile.**

**I resisted the urge to say,**_**Yes, you are.**_

Once again, laughter filled the room at this comment.

**"Sorry to barge in," I told him. "We were just, um, browsing."**

**"You mean hiding from those no-good kids," he grumbled. "They hang around every night. I get a lot of people in here, thanks to them. Say, you want to look at a water bed?"**

**I was about to say**_**No, thanks,**___**when he put a huge paw on my shoulder and steered me deeper into the showroom.**

**There was every kind of water bed you could imagine: different kinds of wood, different patterns of sheets; queen-size, king-size, emperor-of-the-universe-size.**

"Daaaaaaaad?"

"No Hermes."

"But…"

"I said no!"

**"This is my most popular model." Crusty spread his hands proudly over a bed covered with black satin sheets, with built-in Lava Lamps on the headboard. The mattress vibrated, so it looked like oil-flavored Jell-O.**

**"Million-hand massage," Crusty told us. "Go on, try it out. Shoot, take a nap. I don't care. No business today, any-way."**

"Please don't." Athena groaned.

**"Um," I said, "I don't think ..."**

**"Million-hand massage!" Grover cried, and dove in. "Oh, you guys! This is cool."**

Zeus looked as though he was about to say something, but one glance from his daughter soon shut him up.

**"Hmm," Crusty said, stroking his leathery chin. "Almost, almost."**

**"Almost what?" I asked.**

**He looked at Annabeth. "Do me a favor and try this one over here, honey. Might fit."**

**Annabeth said, "But what—"**

"No, no, no, no, no!" Athena started chanting, gripping the arms of her chair tightly.

**He patted her reassuringly on the shoulder and led her over to the Safari Deluxe model with teakwood lions carved into the frame and a leopard-patterned comforter. When Annabeth didn't want to lie down, Crusty pushed her.**

**"Hey!" she protested.**

**Crusty snapped his fingers.**_**"Ergo!"**_

**Ropes sprang from the sides of the bed, lashing around Annabeth, holding her to the mattress.**

**Grover tried to get up, but ropes sprang from his black-satin bed, too, and lashed him down.**

**"N-not c-c-cool!" he yelled, his voice vibrating from the million-hand massage. "N-not c-cool a-at all!"**

"Awwww, does the little baby not enjoy being tied to a bed?" Apollo cooed in his most patronizing baby voice, making everyone laugh again.

**The giant looked at Annabeth, then turned toward me and grinned. "Almost, darn it."**

**I tried to step away, but his hand shot out and clamped around the back of my neck. "Whoa, kid. Don't worry. We'll find you one in a sec."**

"Please, don't bother." Poseidon almost begged, hiding his face in the hair of his son's two year old form.

**"Let my friends go."**

**"Oh, sure I will. But I got to make them fit, first."**

**"What do you mean?"**

**"All the beds are exactly six feet, see? Your friends are too short. Got to make them fit."**

**Annabeth and Grover kept struggling.**

**"Can't stand imperfect measurements," Crusty muttered.**_**"Ergo!"**_

**A new set of ropes leaped out from the top and bottom of the beds, wrapping around Grover and Annabeth's ankles, then around their armpits. The ropes started tightening, pulling my friends from both ends.**

**"Don't worry," Crusty told me, "These are stretching jobs. Maybe three extra inches on their spines. They might even live. Now why don't we find a bed you like, huh?"**

"Yes, because that's reassuring." Percy rolled his eyes.

**"Percy!" Grover yelled.**

**My mind was racing. I knew I couldn't take on this giant water-bed salesman alone. He would snap my neck before I ever got my sword out.**

**"Your real name's not Crusty, is it?" I asked.**

**"Legally, it's Procrustes," he admitted.**

**"The Stretcher," I said. I remembered the story: the giant who'd tried to kill Theseus with excess hospitality on his way to Athens.**

**"Yeah," the salesman said. "But who can pronounce**_**Procrustes?**___**Bad for business. Now 'Crusty,' anybody can say that."**

**"You're right. It's got a good ring to it."**

"Are. You. Mad." Athena spat each word at him as though they tasted bad in her mouth.

"No, he's Percy!" Annabeth responded calmly, making all the demigods laugh again and causing Athena to glare at her instead.

**His eyes lit up. "You think so?"**

**"Oh, absolutely," I said. "And the workmanship on these beds? Fabulous!"**

**He grinned hugely, but his fingers didn't loosen on my neck. "I tell my customers that. Every time. Nobody bothers to look at the workmanship. How many built-in Lava Lamp headboards have you seen?"**

**"Not too many."**

**"That's right!"**

**"Percy!" Annabeth yelled. "What are you doing?"**

**"Don't mind her," I told Procrustes. "She's impossible."**

"Why that little _brat_." Athena fumed while Annabeth leaned closer and whispered in his ear.

"No, she's impossible." As she said this, she pointed to her mother making them both laugh again.

**The giant laughed. "All my customers are. Never six feet exactly. So inconsiderate. And then they complain about the fitting."**

**"What do you do if they're longer than six feet?"**

**"Oh, that happens all the time. It's a simple fix."**

**He let go of my neck, but before I could react, he reached behind a nearby sales desk and brought out a huge double-bladed brass axe.**

**He said, "I just center the subject as best I can and lop off whatever hangs over on either end."**

**"Ah," I said, swallowing hard. "Sensible."**

**"I'm so glad to come across an intelligent customer!"**

**The ropes were really stretching my friends now. Annabeth was turning pale. Grover made gurgling sounds, like a strangled goose.**

**"So, Crusty ..." I said, trying to keep my voice light. I glanced at the sales tag on the valentine-shaped Honeymoon Special. "Does this one really have dynamic stabilizers to stop wave motion?"**

**"Absolutely. Try it out."**

**"Yeah, maybe I will. But would it work even for a big guy like you? No waves at all?"**

**"Guaranteed."**

**"No way."**

**"Way."**

**"Show me."**

"Okay, now I like the plan, but I still hate the kid!" Athena grumbled making Percy smile at the almost compliment.

**He sat down eagerly on the bed, patted the mattress. "No waves. See?"**

**I snapped my fingers.**_**"Ergo."**_

Once again the room was filled with the laughter of the demigods.

"He must have been an idiot, to have been tricked by kelp for brains!" Thalia managed to get out while giggling.

**Ropes lashed around Crusty and flattened him against the mattress.**

**"Hey!" he yelled.**

**"Center him just right," I said.**

**The ropes readjusted themselves at my command. Crusty's whole head stuck out the top. His feet stuck out the bottom.**

**"No!" he said. "Wait! This is just a demo."**

**I uncapped Riptide. "A few simple adjustments ..."**

**I had no qualms about what I was about to do. If Crusty were human, I couldn't hurt him anyway. If he was a monster, he deserved to turn into dust for a while.**

**"You drive a hard bargain," he told me. "I'll give you thirty percent off on selected floor models.'"**

**"I think I'll start with the top." I raised my sword.**

**"No money down! No interest for six months!"**

**I swung the sword. Crusty stopped making offers.**

**I cut the ropes on the other beds. Annabeth and Grover got to their feet, groaning and wincing and cursing me a lot.**

**"You look taller," I said.**

Poseidon chuckled happily while Athena growled.

**"Very funny," Annabeth said. "Be faster next time."**

**I looked at the bulletin board behind Crusty's sales desk. There was an advertisement for Hermes Delivery Service, and another for the All-New Compendium of L.A. Area Monsters—"The only Monstrous Yellow Pages you'll ever need!" Under that, a bright orange flier for DOA Recording Studios, offering commissions for heroes' souls. "We are always looking for new talent!" DOA's address was right underneath with a map.**

"wow, what a coincidence." Dionysus droned sarcastically.

**"Come on," I told my friends.**

**"Give us a minute," Grover complained. "We were almost stretched to death.'"**

**"Then you're ready for the Underworld," I said. "It's only a block from here."**

"And that's the end of the chapter." Hazel finished before she looked around the room in a confused way. "But I don't think, they're sending anyone else so I don't know what we should do now."

No sooner had she stopped talking when there was another, smaller, flash and a note started drifting down at Apollo's feet. Quickly, he leaned forward and grabbed the parchment before it hit the floor.

"_Dear all,_

_Sorry, I think we ran out of demigods relevant to the plot so, to avoid making someone read more than once… for now anyway, it's about time for all of us to read too."_

"Fine." Athena sighed, "looks like we have no choice, just give me the book."

When she had turned to the right chapter she groaned. **"Annabeth Does Obedience School**… Why do I get the impression that I am really going to hate this chapter?"


	20. Annabeth Does Obedience School

**"Annabeth Does Obedience School.**"

Athena sighed but carried on reading anyway, even if she wasn't going to enjoy this, she better get it over with quickly, no sense in delaying.

At the opposite end of the emotional scale, Leo and the Stolls were rolling in their chairs with laughter at the title.

**We stood in the shadows of Valencia Boulevard, looking up at gold letters etched in black marble:****DOA RECORDING STUDIOS.**

**Underneath, stenciled on the glass doors:****NO SOLICITORS. NO LOITERING. NO LIVING.**

"Wow, that's… subtle." Poseidon managed to get out through his snickering while all the other Olympians cracked up. Even Hades grinned at the line though he did think to add.

"That last time I checked, it didn't say that last part!"

Everyone turned to Persephone who just shrugged.

"I have to have some fun when you're away on work!"

**It was almost midnight, but the lobby was brightly lit and full of people. Behind the security desk sat a tough-looking guard with sunglasses and an earpiece.**

**I turned to my friends. "Okay. You remember the plan."**

"Wow, a Percy plan." Thalia remarked, "That has bad Idea written all over it!"

"HEY!"

"Well seaweed brain, did it work?"

"No, but…" Thalia smirked at his words as they proved her point causing all of the demigods to laugh at his expense.

**Annabeth said, "What happens if the plan doesn't work?"**

**"Don't think negative."**

**"Right," she said. "We're entering the Land of the Dead, and I shouldn't think negative."**

"Yes Annie, happy thoughts!" Travis laughed while Annabeth turned back to Percy.

"We need to go back there some time."

"Okay… wait, WHAT?"

For once Athena agreed with the sea spawn.

"Yes daughter, why do you want to return to the underworld?"

Everyone was shocked to see a small tear roll down her cheek as she answered.

"I miss Cerberus."

"Don't worry girl, you will return there someday." Hades told her in an attempt to cheer her up, unfortunately, this comment only managed to freak everyone in the room out.

"Thank you for reminding my daughter that someday she is going to die, Uncle."

"Oops, sorry."

**I took the pearls out of my pocket, the three milky spheres the Nereid had given me in Santa Monica. They didn't seem like much of a backup in case something went wrong.**

"Well that's reassuring!" Poseidon groaned.

Annabeth looked like she was thinking about something, "You know, doesn't it seem that every quest we take on, something always happens that means we barely have enough time to actually complete it?"

Nico flinched, "Yeah, you were cutting it a little close in Rome." Annabeth just blinked at him.

"When were we in Rome?"

**Annabeth put her hand on my shoulder. "I'm sorry, Percy. You're right, we'll make it. It'll be fine."**

**She gave Grover a nudge.**

**"Oh, right!" he chimed in. "We got this far. We'll find the master bolt and save your mom. No problem."**

**I looked at them both, and felt really grateful. Only a few minutes before, I'd almost gotten them stretched to death on deluxe water beds, and now they were trying to be brave for my sake, trying to make me feel better.**

"They must all have had enough cereal." Demeter nodded knowingly.

**I slipped the pearls back in my pocket. "Let's whup some Underworld butt."**

**We walked inside the DOA lobby.**

**Music played softly on hidden speakers. The carpet and walls were steel gray. Pencil cactuses grew in the corners like skeleton hands. The furniture was black leather, and every seat was taken. There were people sitting on couches, people standing up, people staring out the windows or waiting for the elevator. Nobody moved, or talked, or did much of anything.**

"Yes, they never do talk much, they make horrible company." Persephone shuddered slightly.

"And now you see why I miss you so much when you leave for the summer." Hades whispered in her ear before kissing her, making his wife blush bright red.

"Aww, they're not that bad really." Nico stated earning himself some strange looks before he sighed. "Fine, I'll go move in with Leo now."

**Out of the corner of my eye, I could see them all just fine, but if I focused on any one of them in particular, they started looking ... transparent. I could see right through their bodies.**

"Well nooo, I thought that all ghosts looked like floating bed sheets with eye holes cut out of them." Connor snickered at Percy who just shrugged it off with a grin.

**The security guard's desk was a raised podium, so we had to look up at him.**

**He was tall and elegant, with chocolate-colored skin and bleached-blond hair shaved military style. He wore tortoiseshell shades and a silk Italian suit that matched his hair. A black rose was pinned to his lapel under a silver name tag.**

"That idiot and his ridiculous suits." Hades groaned, rubbing his temples as though he had headache. Aphrodite on the other hand, simply looked affronted.

"Looking good is important!"

**I read the name tag, then looked at him in bewilderment. "Your name is Chiron?"**

**He leaned across the desk. I couldn't see anything in his glasses except my own reflection, but his smile was sweet and cold, like a pythons, right before it eats you.**

**"What a precious young lad." He had a strange accent—British, maybe, but also as if he had learned English as a second language. "Tell me, mate, do I look like a centaur?"**

"Ooooh, a British accent!" Aphrodite squealed turning to her husband, "DO you think that you could do one of those?"

Piper groaned and Leo cheered as his Dad looked around for some help.

"Yes, I get the goddess of love in my kingdom!"

Taking pity on the blacksmith, Athena suddenly launched into a tirade: "Actually, there are many different types of British accent with people from places such as Yorkshire in the north sounding very different from people from…"

"Thank you Athena, please read." Zeus cut her off.

**"N-no."**

**"Sir," he added smoothly.**

**"Sir," I said.**

**He pinched the name tag and ran his finger under the letters. "Can you read this, mate? It says C-H**_**-A-**_**R-O-N. Say it with me: CARE-ON."**

**"Charon."**

**"Amazing! Now:**_**Mr.**_**Charon."**

**"Mr. Charon," I said.**

**"Well done." He sat back. "I**_**hate**_**being confused with that old horse-man. And now, how may I help you little dead ones?"**

"Is Charon _blind?" _Nico laughed, "You guys don't even _look _dead!"

Percy looked across at his cousin in a strange way, "Er, thanks… I think."

**His question caught in my stomach like a fastball. I looked at Annabeth for support.**

"Idiot!" Athena muttered before she carried on reading.

**"We want to go the Underworld," she said.**

**Charon's mouth twitched. "Well, that's refreshing."**

"I bet it is, not even I want to go to the underworld." Hades sighed, "Charon really is an idiot!"

"Hey, I like going to the underworld." Everyone, even the boy's father, turned to look at Nico in shock. Thalia leaned over to Percy and Annabeth.

"How many times do you think he was dropped on his head when he was a baby?"

**"It is?" she asked.**

**"Straightforward and honest. No screaming. No 'There must be a mistake, Mr. Charon.' "**

"As if Thanatos would make a mistake like that." Zeus sniffed, "Foolish mortals."

Rachel rolled her eyes but decided that it might not be a good idea to interrupt him.

**He looked us over. "How did you die, then?"**

**I nudged Grover.**

**"Oh," he said. "Um ... drowned ... in the bathtub."**

Hermes groaned, "Honestly? Again, this is why I say he needs lying lessons!"

Hazel turned to Percy, "I thought you couldn't drown?"

"I can't, but Charon didn't know that, he just thought we were dead mortals, and mortals can drown." He pointed out helpfully causing everyone to laugh at him… again.

**"All three of you?" Charon asked. We nodded.**

The god of thieves started choking while Apollo was just laughing on the floor, having fallen out of his chair at the sign on the door.

"He's actually going to fall for that?"

**"Big bathtub." Charon looked mildly impressed.**

Hermes face palmed while everyone else burst out laughing.

_**"**_**I don't suppose you have coins for passage. Normally, with adults, you see, I could charge your American Express, or add the ferry price to your last cable bill. But with children ... alas, you never die prepared. Suppose you'll have to take a seat for a few centuries."**

"Brother, is that really what happens to the children?" Hestia looked up, concern easy to see in her golden eyes. Hades just looked ashamed, no one liked upsetting their oldest sister.

"I will look into it later."

**"Oh, but we have coins." I set three golden drachmas on the counter, part of the stash I'd found in Crusty's office desk.**

**"Well, now ..." Charon moistened his lips. "Real drachmas. Real golden drachmas. I haven't seen these in ..."**

"And even that doesn't give them away? This guys is thicker than Ares!" Hephaestus grumbled, making his brother glare across the room at him.

**His fingers hovered greedily over the coins.**

**We were so close.**

**Then Charon looked at me. That cold stare behind his glasses seemed to bore a hole through my chest.**

**"Here now," he said. "You couldn't read my name correctly. Are you dyslexic, lad?"**

"A big round of Applause of Charon everybody!" Travis said, sarcasm dripping off of every word.

"He just discovered the most obvious lie of the century!" Connor finished with a smatter of mock applause.

**"No," I said. "I'm dead."**

"What was going through your brain then seaweed brain?" Annabeth asked him jokingly.

"Nothing, I was dead." He replied before pushing himself up to kiss her again.

**Charon leaned forward and took a sniff. "You're not dead. I should've known. You're a godling."**

"You're demigods? Really? I just thought you were some mortals who wanted to have a picnic in the underworld." Leo called out in fake shock.

"Yes," Percy nodded, playing along, "That's exactly what we thought too."

"Oooh, a picnic by the Styx, we should try that some time." Annabeth bubbled enthusiastically, making her boyfriend look a little panicked.

"Really? We can If you want but…" He stopped when she burst out laughing.

"That was a joke seaweed brain!"

**"We have to get to the Underworld," I insisted.**

**Charon made a growling sound deep in his throat.**

**Immediately, all the people in the waiting room got up and started pacing, agitated, lighting cigarettes, running hands through their hair, or checking their wristwatches.**

**"Leave while you can," Charon told us. "I'll just take these and forget I saw you."**

**He started to go for the coins, but I snatched them back.**

**"No service, no tip." I tried to sound braver than I felt.**

"Well, you don't really tip people who don't help you." Artemis reasoned.

**Charon growled again—a deep, blood-chilling sound. The spirits of the dead started pounding on the elevator doors.**

**"It's a shame, too," I sighed. "We had more to offer."**

Hermes eyes lit up. "Bribery? You sure you're not one of my kids Perce?"

"Pretty sure Lord Hermes."

"Dang it!"

**I held up the entire bag from Crusty's stash. I took out a fistful of drachmas and let the coins spill through my fingers.**

**Charon's growl changed into something more like a lion's purr. "Do you think I can be bought, godling?**

"Yes." Hades, Nico and Persephone all said at the same time, making everyone else in the room laugh again.

**Eh ... just out of curiosity, how much have you got there?"**

**"A lot," I said. "I bet Hades doesn't pay you well enough for such hard work."**

"This better not be going where I think it is!" Hades shot a dangerous look at Percy who just shrugged, attempting to look contrite but he couldn't hide his grin.

"Sorry?"

**"Oh, you don't know the half of it. How would you like to babysit these spirits all day? Always 'Please don't let me be dead' or 'Please let me across for free.' I haven't had a pay raise in three thousand years. Do you imagine suits like this come cheap?"**

**"You deserve better," I agreed. "A little appreciation. Respect. Good pay."**

"Don't encourage him." This time, the Lord of the dead groaned instead of threatened, it looked like he had resigned himself to the inevitable.

**With each word, I stacked another gold coin on the counter.**

**Charon glanced down at his silk Italian jacket, as if imagining himself in something even better. "I must say, lad, you're making some sense now. Just a little."**

**I stacked another few coins. "I could mention a pay raise while I'm talking to Hades."**

"And then run out of the room screaming." Persephone giggled. Her husband turned to her looking hurt.

"Do you really think that badly of me my dear?"

"Well, you can be a little stingy with money at times my Lord."

"Not when it concerns you however." Hades caressed her face, kissed her then showed his wife the stunning silver necklace he had just fastened behind her hair.

Hermes whistled, "Nice sleight of hand Uncle H!"

**He sighed. "The boat's almost full, anyway. I might as well add you three and be off."**

**He stood, scooped up our money, and said, "Come along."**

**We pushed through the crowd of waiting spirits, who started grabbing at our clothes like the wind, their voices whispering things I couldn't make out. Charon shoved them out of the way, grumbling, "Freeloaders."**

**He escorted us into the elevator, which was already crowded with souls of the dead, each one holding a green boarding pass. Charon grabbed two spirits who were trying to get on with us and pushed them back into the lobby.**

**"Right. Now, no one get any ideas while I'm gone," he announced to the waiting room. "And if anyone moves the dial off my easy-listening station again, I'll make sure you're here for another thousand years. Understand?"**

Apollo shuddered, "I really need to go and introduce him to some better music, no sense putting the souls through torture before they have even been judged!"

**He shut the doors. He put a key card into a slot in the elevator panel and we started to descend.**

**"What happens to the spirits waiting in the lobby?" Annabeth asked.**

**"Nothing," Charon said.**

**"For how long?"**

**"Forever, or until I'm feeling generous."**

"Brother…"

"I know Hestia, I will talk to him about it later."

The goddess of the hearth smiled happily up at him before turning back to her fire contentedly pocking it with a stick (**A/N: **that is actually _a lot_ more fun than it sounds).

**"Oh," she said. "That's ... fair."**

**Charon raised an eyebrow. "Whoever said death was fair, young miss? Wait until it's your turn. You'll die soon enough, where you're going."**

**"We'll get out alive," I said.**

**"Ha."**

**I got a sudden dizzy feeling. We weren't going down anymore, but forward. The air turned misty. Spirits around me started changing shape. Their modern clothes flickered, turning into gray hooded robes. The floor of the elevator began swaying.**

**I blinked hard. When I opened my eyes, Charon's creamy Italian suit had been replaced by a long black robe. His tortoiseshell glasses were gone. Where his eyes should've been were empty sockets—like Ares's eyes, except Charon's were totally dark, full of night and death and despair.**

**He saw me looking, and said, "Well?"**

**"Nothing," I managed.**

**I thought he was grinning, but that wasn't it. The flesh of his face was becoming transparent, letting me see straight through to his skull.**

**The floor kept swaying.**

**Grover said, "I think I'm getting seasick."**

**When I blinked again, the elevator wasn't an elevator anymore. We were standing in a wooden barge. Charon was poling us across a dark, oily river, swirling with bones, dead fish, and other, stranger things—plastic dolls, crushed car nations, soggy diplomas with gilt edges.**

"Brother, you really need to clean the Styx!" Poseidon complained.

"Yeah, that thing is so toxic that it nearly burned all of my skin off the last time I went swimming in it!" Percy commented jokingly, making everyone in the room look at him as though he had gone mad. Poseidon looked as though he was about to have a heart attack.

"Please do not tell me that you went _swimming, _in the _STYX."_

Percy, suddenly realizing what he had said went bright red. "Moving on…"

**"The River Styx," Annabeth murmured. "It's so ..."**

**"Polluted," Charon said. "For thousands of years, you humans have been throwing in everything as you come across—hopes, dreams, wishes that never came true. Irresponsible waste management, if you ask me."**

"How about I assign you to do that then Charon if you despise the pollution that much." Hades chuckled darkly and everyone else shifted uneasily in their seats.

**Mist curled off the filthy water. Above us, almost lost in the gloom, was a ceiling of stalactites. Ahead, the far shore glimmered with greenish light, the color of poison.**

**Panic closed up my throat. What was I doing here? These people around me ... they were dead.**

**Annabeth grabbed hold of my hand.**

"aww, you're going on your second date!" Aphrodite cooed happily.

**Under normal circumstances, this would've embarrassed me, but I understood how she felt. She wanted reassurance that somebody else was alive on this boat.**

**I found myself muttering a prayer, though I wasn't quite sure who I was praying to. Down here, only one god mattered, and he was the one I had come to confront.**

"YES, he just said I matter more then you two!" Hades cheered gleefully while Zeus just groaned.

"Thank you for giving him an even bigger head now boy!"

**The shoreline of the Underworld came into view. Craggy rocks and black volcanic sand stretched inland about a hundred yards to the base of a high stone wall, which marched off in either direction as far as we could see. A sound came from somewhere nearby in the green gloom, echoing off the stones—the howl of a large animal.**

Annabeth looked like she was going to start crying again until Percy pulled her closer and planted a kiss on her cheek.

**"Old Three-Face is hungry," Charon said. His smile turned skeletal in the greenish light. "Bad luck for you, godlings."**

A sudden idea occurred to Athena and she planted a sweet smile before she turned to Hades.

"Uncle, you I love you…"

"What do you want Athena?"

"If my daughter dies, can she go to Elysian?"

"Athena, she is sitting right in front of you."

"But still…"

"I'll think about it."

**The bottom of our boat slid onto the black sand. The dead began to disembark. A woman holding a little girl's hand. An old man and an old woman hobbling along arm in arm. A boy no older than I was, shuffling silently along in his gray robe.**

**Charon said, "I'd wish you luck, mate, but there isn't any down here. Mind you, don't forget to mention my pay raise."**

**He counted our golden coins into his pouch, then took up his pole. He warbled something that sounded like a Barry Manilow song as he ferried the empty barge back across the river.**

Apollo nodded to himself, "Definitely going to go teach him about good music!"

**We followed the spirits up a well-worn path.**

**I'm not sure what I was expecting—Pearly Gates,**

"Oh, can we please get some darling?" Persephone battered her eyes at her husband who shrugged and turned to Hephaestus.

"How much?"

The blacksmith thought about it for a minute. "Don't know, I'll get back to you on that."

The queen of the underworld leaned back in her throne smiling happily.

**or a big black portcullis, or something. But the entrance to the Underworld looked like a cross between airport security and the Jersey Turnpike.**

**There were three separate entrances under one huge black archway that said YOU ARE NOW ENTERING EREBUS. Each entrance had a pass-through metal detector with security cameras mounted on top. Beyond this were tollbooths manned by black-robed ghouls like Charon.**

"I would hate that place." Will shuddered.

**The howling of the hungry animal was really loud now, but I couldn't see where it was coming from. The three-headed dog, Cerberus, who was supposed to guard Hades's door, was nowhere to be seen.**

"Cerberus is only visible to the dead." Nico explained, which would have been fine apart from the fact that he decided to carry on talking, "unless you're me, and then you're awesome enough to see him."

All the other demigods groaned except for Hazel who just grinned at her brother's antics.

**The dead queued up in the three lines, two marked ATTENDANT ON DUTY, and one marked EZ DEATH. The EZ DEATH line was moving right along. The other two were crawling.**

**"What do you figure?" I asked Annabeth.**

**"The fast line must go straight to the Asphodel Fields," she said. "No contest. They don't want to risk judgment from the court, because it might go against them."**

**"There's a court for dead people?"**

"Why are you so surprised?" Hades turned to look at his nephew who just shrugged.

"Just a bit of a shock I guess."

**"Yeah. Three judges. They switch around who sits on the bench. King Minos, Thomas Jefferson, Shakespeare—people like that. Sometimes they look at a life and decide that person needs a special reward—the Fields of Elysium. Sometimes they decide on punishment. But most people, well, they just lived. Nothing special, good or bad. So they go to the Asphodel Fields."**

**"And do what?"**

**Grover said, "Imagine standing in a wheat field in Kansas. Forever."**

Hazel shuddered looking miserable, "That was the worst place I have ever been!" She didn't cheer up until Frank leaned across and hugged her close.

**"Harsh," I said.**

**"Not as harsh as that," Grover muttered. "Look."**

**A couple of black-robed ghouls had pulled aside one spirit and were frisking him at the security desk. The face of the dead man looked vaguely familiar.**

**"He's that preacher who made the news, remember?" Grover asked.**

**"Oh, yeah." I did remember now. We'd seen him on TV a couple of times at the Yancy Academy dorm. He was this annoying televangelist from upstate New York who'd raised millions of dollars for orphanages and then got caught spending the money on stuff for his mansion, like gold-plated toilet seats, and an indoor putt-putt golf course. He'd died in a police chase when his "Lamborghini for the Lord" went off a cliff.**

**I said, "What're they doing to him?"**

**"Special punishment from Hades," Grover guessed. "The really bad people get his personal attention as soon as they arrive. The Fur—the Kindly Ones will set up an eternal torture for him."**

"Brother, you know I love you…" Everyone began sniggering as Poseidon copied his niece's plan.

"What Poseidon?" Hades worked to sound bored and disinterested but there was a distinct sparkle of humor in his eyes.

"You know when my son's step dad gets there…?"

"Done." All of the Greek demigods cheered at this and Hades smirked, it felt good to be appreciated.

"Thank you."

**The thought of the Furies made me shudder. I realized I was in their home territory now. Old Mrs. Dodds would be licking her lips with anticipation.**

**"But if he's a preacher," I said, "and he believes in a different hell..."**

**Grover shrugged. "Who says he's seeing this place the way we're seeing it? Humans see what they want to see. You're very stubborn—er, persistent, that way."**

**We got closer to the gates. The howling was so loud now it shook the ground at my feet, but I still couldn't figure out where it was coming from.**

**Then, about fifty feet in front of us, the green mist shimmered. Standing just where the path split into three lanes was an enormous shadowy monster.**

**I hadn't seen it before because it was half transparent, like the dead. Until it moved, it blended with whatever was behind it. Only its eyes and teeth looked solid. And it was staring straight at me.**

Hera shuddered, "That sounds terrifying."

**My jaw hung open. All I could think to say was, "He's a Rottweiler."**

Laughter filled the throne room as Percy's comment broke up the mounting tension.

**I'd always imagined Cerberus as a big black mastiff. But he was obviously a purebred Rottweiler, except of course that he was twice the size of a woolly mammoth, mostly invisible, and had three heads.**

**The dead walked right up to him—no fear at all. The ATTENDANT ON DUTY lines parted on either side of him. The EZ DEATH spirits walked right between his front paws and under his belly, which they could do without even crouching.**

**"I'm starting to see him better," I muttered. "Why is that?"**

Poseidon whimpered, "I don't think I want to hear that explanation."

**"I think ..." Annabeth moistened her lips. "I'm afraid it's because we're getting closer to being dead."**

**The dog's middle head craned toward us. It sniffed the air and growled.**

**"It can smell the living," I said.**

**"But that's okay," Grover said, trembling next to me. "Because we have a plan."**

**"Right," Annabeth said. I'd never heard her voice sound quite so small. "A plan."**

"Why do I get the feeling that this is about to go terribly wrong?" Katie asked.

"Because Percy came up with the plan?" Rachel shrugged, making the others laugh. The demigods, being from various points in the future, were all a lot less stressed about this than the gods were.

**We moved toward the monster.**

**The middle head snarled at us, then barked so loud my eyeballs rattled.**

**"Can you understand it?" I asked Grover.**

**"Oh yeah," he said. "I can understand it."**

**"What's it saying?"**

"I'm pretty sure you don't want to know." Nico said darkly, "Cerberus doesn't exactly have a clean mouth."

**"I don't think humans have a four-letter word that translates, exactly."**

**I took the big stick out of my backpack—a bedpost I'd broken off Crusty's Safari Deluxe floor model. I held it up, and tried to channel happy dog thoughts toward Cerberus—Alpo commercials, cute little pup pies, fire hydrants. I tried to smile, like I wasn't about to die.**

"Please, oh_ please _tell me that_ that _is not your plan_." _Athena glared across the room at the sea spawn who decided to hide behind her daughter.

**"Hey, Big Fella," I called up. "I bet they don't play with you much."**

"Great plan boy, great plan!" Ares snickered.

_**"GROWWWLLLL!"**_

**"Good boy," I said weakly.**

**I waved the stick. The dog's middle head followed the movement. The other two heads trained their eyes on me, completely ignoring the spirits. I had Cerberus's undivided attention. I wasn't sure that was a good thing.**

"Please run Percy." Poseidon told the toddler in his lap who seemed to take it literally and stumbled across the room towards Annabeth.

Jason laughed and turned to his siter, "What do you think he's going to be like when he finds out about Percy falling into Tartarus?"

Thalia turned to him looking shocked, "What?"

**"Fetch!" I threw the stick into the gloom, a good solid throw. I heard it go**_**ker-sploosh**_ **in the River Styx.**

"SPLASH!" Baby Percy screeched, making the room laugh and teenage Percy's face go bright red.

**Cerberus glared at me, unimpressed. His eyes were baleful and cold.**

**So much for the plan.**

**Cerberus was now making a new kind of growl, deeper down in his three throats.**

**"Um," Grover said. "Percy?"**

**"Yeah?"**

**"I just thought you'd want to know."**

**"Yeah?"**

**"Cerberus? He's saying we've got ten seconds to pray to the god of our choice**_**.**_**After that... well ... he's hungry."**

There were a few nervous titters as some people tried to break the tension, but Poseidon was sat with his head in his hands and it looked as though Athena was struggling to get the words out.

**"Wait!" Annabeth said. She started rifling through her pack.**

**Uh-oh, I thought.**

"Yes." Athena hissed, "Good girl Annabeth, good girl!"

"I'm not a dog Mom!" The blond protested, causing Travis to snicker.

"Are you sure Annie the chapter _does _say that you go to obedience school!" A punch in his face soon shut the son of Hermes up.

**"Five seconds," Grover said. "Do we run now?"**

**Annabeth produced a red rubber ball the size of a grapefruit. It was labeled WATERLAND, DENVER, CO. Before I could stop her, she raised the ball and marched straight up to Cerberus.**

**She shouted, "See the ball? You want the ball, Cerberus? Sit!"**

"Why did you think that that would work?" Katie asked her, confused, Annabeth simply shrugged.

"Just a hunch."

"A brilliant hunch!" Percy added, pulling her back for a kiss.

**Cerberus looked as stunned as we were.**

**All three of his heads cocked sideways. Six nostrils dilated.**

**"Sit!" Annabeth called again.**

**I was sure that any moment she would become the world's largest Milk bone dog biscuit.**

**But instead, Cerberus licked his three sets of lips, shifted on his haunches, and sat, immediately crushing a dozen spirits who'd been passing underneath him in the EZ DEATH line. The spirits made muffled hisses as they dissipated, like the air let out of tires.**

A stunned silence filled the room until Hades turned to the daughter of Athena.

"How did you do that?"

"Luck I guess?"

**Annabeth said, "Good boy!"**

**She threw Cerberus the ball.**

**He caught it in his middle mouth. It was barely big enough for him to chew, and the other heads started snap ping at the middle, trying to get the new toy.**

**"Drop it.'" Annabeth ordered.**

**Cerberus's heads stopped fighting and looked at her. The ball was wedged between two of his teeth like a tiny piece of gum. He made a loud, scary whimper, then dropped the ball, now slimy and bitten nearly in half, at Annabeth's feet.**

"Hey, I just had a thought of who we can get to be Cerberus' play mate!" Connor said, sitting straighter in his chair.

"Who's that?" Nico was the one to break the silence.

"Mrs O'Leary!"

Everyone sat in a stunned silence, that was actually a good idea!

**"Good boy." She picked up the ball, ignoring the monster spit all over it.**

**She turned toward us. "Go now. EZ DEATH line—it's faster."**

**I said, "But—"**

**"Now.'" She ordered, in the same tone she was using on the dog.**

"Yes, but that is only to be expected seeing as though men _are _just about as stupid as dogs." Artemis sniffed, glaring at all the males in the room.

"You know what, I'm really beginning to regret taking the sky from her!" Percy stage whispered to Annabeth making them both laugh and earning himself a confused glance from the goddess.

**Grover and I inched forward warily.**

**Cerberus started to growl.**

**"Stay!" Annabeth ordered the monster. "If you want the ball, stay!"**

**Cerberus whimpered, but he stayed where he was.**

**"What about you?" I asked Annabeth as we passed her.**

**"I know what I'm doing, Percy," she muttered. "At least, I'm pretty sure..."**

"You better not try to sacrifice yourself for the sea rat!" Athena warned her daughter who just huffed and rolled her eyes.

"I don't see why you're lecturing _me _mother, this all happened 5 years ago for me!"

Nico looked at her a little shocked, "Only 5?"

"Yes why?" Her eyes narrowed at the confusion in the boy's voice.

"Um, let me think for a bit."

**Grover and I walked between the monster's legs.**

**Please, Annabeth, I prayed. Don't tell him to sit again.**

**We made it through. Cerberus wasn't any less scary-looking from the back.**

**Annabeth said, "Good dog!"**

**She held up the tattered red ball, and probably came to the same conclusion I did—if she rewarded Cerberus, there'd be nothing left for another trick.**

**She threw the ball anyway. The monster's left mouth immediately snatched it up, only to be attacked by the middle head, while the right head moaned in protest.**

**While the monster was distracted, Annabeth walked briskly under its belly and joined us at the metal detector.**

**"How did you do that?" I asked her, amazed.**

**"Obedience school," she said breathlessly, and I was surprised to see there were tears in her eyes.**

**"When I was little, at my dad's house, we had a Doberman..."**

**"Never mind that," Grover said, tugging at my shirt. "Come on!"**

**We were about to bolt through the EZ DEATH line when Cerberus moaned pitifully from all three mouths. Annabeth stopped.**

**She turned to face the dog, which had done a one-eighty to look at us.**

**Cerberus panted expectantly, the tiny red ball in pieces in a puddle of drool at its feet.**

**"Good boy," Annabeth said, but her voice sounded melancholy and uncertain.**

**The monster's heads turned sideways, as if worried about her.**

**"I'll bring you another ball soon," Annabeth promised faintly. "Would you like that?"**

**The monster whimpered. I didn't need to speak dog to know Cerberus was still waiting for the ball.**

**"Good dog. I'll come visit you soon. I—I promise." Annabeth turned to us. "Let's go."**

"Hence the fact you say you miss him." Apollo summarized while Annabeth simply nodded her head, not trusting herself to speak as she had tears in her eyes again.

**Grover and I pushed through the metal detector, which immediately screamed and set off flashing red lights. "Unauthorized possessions! Magic detected!"**

**Cerberus started to bark.**

**We burst through the EZ DEATH gate, which started even more alarms blaring, and raced into the Underworld.**

**A few minutes later, we were hiding, out of breath, in the rotten trunk of an immense black tree as security ghouls scuttled past, yelling for backup from the Furies.**

**Grover murmured, "Well, Percy, what have we learned today?"**

**"That three-headed dogs prefer red rubber balls over sticks?"**

At this, Apollo and Hermes once again began to literally ROFL.

**"No," Grover told me. "We've learned that your plans really, really bite!"**

"Agreed!" All the Greek demigods cheered happily causing Percy to sulk.

"My plans aren't _that _bad!"

**I wasn't sure about that. I thought maybe Annabeth and I had both had the right idea. Even here in the Underworld, everybody—even monsters—needed a little attention once in a while.**

**I thought about that as we waited for the ghouls to pass. I pretended not to see Annabeth wipe a tear from her cheek as she listened to the mournful keening of Cerberus in the distance, longing for his new friend.**

Athena closed the book and took a deep breath. "That's the end of the chapter, who wants to read next?"

Hades sighed, "I guess, if we are all going to have to read, I will get my turn over with now." He took the book and flipped to the right page. "**We Find out the Truth, Sort of**... Well, at least that means that you are going to clear my name!"


	21. We Find out the Truth, Sort of

"**We Find out the Truth, Sort of,"**

Hades read before Zeus stopped him, looking down at his nephew,

"What does it mean 'sort of'"

The son on Poseidon just shrugged.

**Imagine the largest concert crowd you've ever seen, a foot ball field packed with a million fans.**

**Now imagine a field a million times that big, packed with people, and imagine the electricity has gone out, and there is no noise, no light, no beach ball bouncing around over the crowd. Something tragic has happened backstage. Whispering masses of people are just milling around in the shadows, waiting for a concert that will never start.**

Hermes winced, "That sounds about right!"

**If you can picture that, you have a pretty good idea what the Fields of Asphodel looked like. The black grass had been trampled by eons of dead feet. A warm, moist wind blew like the breath of a swamp. Black trees—Grover told me they were poplars—grew in clumps here and there.**

**The cavern ceiling was so high above us it might've been a bank of storm clouds, except for the stalactites, which glowed faint gray and looked wickedly pointed. I tried not to imagine they'd fall on us at any moment, but dotted around the fields were several that had fallen and impaled themselves in the black grass. I guess the dead didn't have to worry about little hazards like being speared by stalactites the size of booster rockets.**

**Annabeth, Grover, and I tried to blend into the crowd, keeping an eye out for security ghouls. I couldn't help looking for familiar faces among the spirits of Asphodel,**

"Who were you looking for?" Poseidon peeked over at his son curiously but again Percy just shrugged,

"Not a clue."

**but the dead are hard to look at. Their faces shimmer. They all look slightly angry or confused. They will come up to you and speak, but their voices sound like chatter, like bats twittering. Once they realize you can't understand them, they frown and move away.**

Hazel sighed and Frank wrapped an arm around her again, making Nico scowl at the floor.

**The dead aren't scary. They're just sad.**

"With friends like that, no wonder Nico went all Emo on us!" Travis snickered before a large stone hit him on the head, when he looked down , it was a large emerald.

Nico shot a look at Hazel, "You really shouldn't do that!"

The girl smiled, walked over and snatched the gem away, stopping long enough to say, "I'm dead, idiot!"

**We crept along, following the line of new arrivals that snaked from the main gates toward a black-tented pavilion with a banner that read:**

_**JUDGMENTS FOR ELYSIUM AND ETERNAL DAMNATION**_

_**Welcome, Newly Deceased!**_

"What a happy sign!" Demeter rolled her eyes, "I especially love the damnation bit."

Hades looked like he was about to respond, but a quick glare from his youngest brother had him just fumed in his wife's arms instead.

**Out the back of the tent came two much smaller lines.**

**To the left, spirits flanked by security ghouls were marched down a rocky path toward the Fields of Punishment, which glowed and smoked in the distance, a vast, cracked wasteland with rivers of lava and minefields and miles of barbed wire separating the different torture areas. Even from far away, I could see people being chased by hellhounds, burned at the stake, forced to run naked through cactus patches or listen to opera music.**

Everyone burst out laughing at the last one while Hera pouted;

"I like Opera!"

**I could just make out a tiny hill, with the ant-size figure of Sisyphus struggling to move his boulder to the top. And I saw worse tortures, too—things I don't want to describe.**

Percy shuddered at this, pulling Annabeth closer for comfort.

**The line coming from the right side of the judgment pavilion was much better. This one led down toward a small valley surrounded by walls—a gated community, which seemed to be the only happy part of the Underworld. Beyond the security gate were neighborhoods of beautiful houses from every time period in history, Roman villas and medieval castles and Victorian mansions. Silver and gold flowers bloomed on the lawns. The grass rippled in rainbow colors. I could hear laughter and smell barbecue cooking.**

All the demigods sighed.

"After all we've been through," Will sighed, "I hope we get there!"

All the others nodded around him and the gods all shifted uneasily in their chairs, they did not want to think about their children dying, even if they did end up in Elysium.

**Elysium.**

**In the middle of that valley was a glittering blue lake, with three small islands like a vacation resort in the Bahamas. The Isles of the Blest, for people who had chosen to be reborn three times, and three times achieved Elysium. Immediately I knew that's where I wanted to go when I died.**

"Well, if you don't get in seaweed brain, none of us will!" Annabeth sighed into his neck, making Percy whisper back,

"It wouldn't be Elysium without you."

**"That's what it's all about," Annabeth said, like she was reading my thoughts. "That's the place for heroes."**

**But I thought of how few people there were in Elysium, how tiny it was compared to the Fields of Asphodel or even the Fields of Punishment. So few people did good in their lives. It was depressing.**

"Yes, it is." Hestia spoke sadly with a trace of real pain in her voice, all of the demigods looked at the floor ashamedly.

**We left the judgment pavilion and moved deeper into the Asphodel Fields. It got darker. The colors faded from our clothes. The crowds of chattering spirits began to thin.**

**After a few miles of walking, we began to hear a familiar screech in the distance. Looming on the horizon was a palace of glittering black obsidian. Above the parapets swirled three dark bat like creatures: the Furies. I got the feeling they were waiting for us.**

**"I suppose it's too late to turn back," Grover said wistfully.**

"Come on Grover, like we will let them hurt you?" The daughter of Athena rolled her eyes.

"Um, wise girl, you do realize that you are talking to a book right?" Her boyfriend quickly dropped the point when she decided to introduce his face to the palm of her hand.

**"We'll be okay." I tried to sound confident.**

**"Maybe we should search some of the other places first," Grover suggested. "Like, Elysium, for instance …"**

**"Come on, goat boy." Annabeth grabbed his arm.**

**Grover yelped. His sneakers sprouted wings and his legs shot forward, pulling him away from Annabeth. He landed flat on his back in the grass.**

"Are they supposed to do that?" Apollo asked his brother skeptically. Hermes just shook his head in confusion, he had no idea what was going on.

**"Grover," Annabeth chided. "Stop messing around."**

"Um, I really don't think that even those morons would dare mess around in the underworld." Thalia said with a smirk, pointing at the Stolls. The sons of Hermes sat there nodding along for a few seconds before they worked out that she was insulting them.

"HEY!"

Their indignant shout set off the laughter once again.

**"But I didn't—"**

**He yelped again. His shoes were flapping like crazy now. They levitated off the ground and started dragging him away from us.**

_**"Maia!"**_**he yelled, but the magic word seemed to have no effect.**_**"Maia, **_**already! Nine-one-one! Help!"**

"Nine-one-one?" Nico managed to get out through his laughter, "I think it's a bit late to be calling the emergency services Grover, most of the people around you are dead!"

**I got over being stunned and made a grab for Grover's hand, but too late. He was picking up speed, skidding downhill like a bobsled.**

**We ran after him.**

**Annabeth shouted, "Untie the shoes!"**

"Yes because he can really do that when they are pulling him somewhere." Rachel sighed as though she was disappointed but there was a joking look in her eye as she tutted at Annabeth. The other girl just huffed agitatedly before cracking a smile.

"I dare you to try and think of something better than that when you're freaking out Rachel!"

**It was a smart idea, but I guess it's not so easy when your shoes are pulling you along feet first at full speed. Grover tried to sit up, but he couldn't get close to the laces.**

**We kept after him, trying to keep him in sight as he ripped between the legs of spirits who chattered at him in annoyance.**

**I was sure Grover was going to barrel straight through the gates of Hades's palace, but his shoes veered sharply to the right and dragged him in the opposite direction.**

Hades stopped reading, flashing a look at Zeus, "The opposite to my palace is…"

"Just keep reading brother!"

**The slope got steeper. Grover picked up speed. Annabeth and I had to sprint to keep up. The cavern walls narrowed on either side, and I realized we'd entered some kind of side tunnel. No black grass or trees now, just rock underfoot, and the dim light of the stalactites above.**

Athena cringed, "I really don't want to know what happens if they get any closer to that place!"

There was great tension in the room as her words sunk in, even Apollo had lost his dopy smile.

**"Grover!" I yelled, my voice echoing. "Hold on to something!"**

"What was he going to grab hold of kelp for brains." Thalia moaned, not liking where this was going.

**"What?" he yelled back.**

**He was grabbing at gravel, but there was nothing big enough to slow him down.**

**The tunnel got darker and colder. The hairs on my arms bristled. It smelled evil down here. It made me think of things I shouldn't even know about—blood spilled on an ancient stone altar, the foul breath of a murderer.**

**Then I saw what was ahead of us, and I stopped dead in my tracks.**

**The tunnel widened into a huge dark cavern, and in the middle was a chasm the size of a city block.**

All of the Olympians flinched, they knew where this was.

**Grover was sliding straight toward the edge.**

The attention of every god in the room was fixed solidly on Hades as he read, on the other hand, all of the demigods seemed to find their transfixed expressions hilarious apart from Thalia who was glaring at her father's, more than slightly, hopeful one.

**"Come on, Percy!" Annabeth yelled, tugging at my wrist.**

**"But that's—"**

**"I know!" she shouted. "The place you described in your dream! But Grover's going to fall if we don't catch him." She was right, of course. Grover's predicament got me moving again.**

**He was yelling, clawing at the ground, but the winged shoes kept dragging him toward the pit, and it didn't look like we could possibly get to him in time.**

**What saved him were his hooves.**

The Olympians let out a collective breath apart from Zeus who let out a disappointed moan shortly followed by a hiss of pain.

"Thalia!"

"You were hoping that my friend was going to die weren't you?"

"… Maybe?"

"You're hopeless!" The gods now laughed at their mighty leader being scolded by his 16 year old daughter.

**The flying sneakers had always been a loose fit on him, and finally Grover hit a big rock and the left shoe came flying off. It sped into the darkness, down into the chasm. The right shoe kept tugging him along, but not as fast. Grover was able to slow himself down by grabbing on to the big rock and using it like an anchor.**

Apollo cheered at this while his sister rolled her eyes.

"Grow up will you!"

Apollo looked like he had just been shot before he recited the lines;

"Growing old is inescapable, growing up is inexcusable!"

Artemis growled at him, "You can't grow old, you're a god!"

"Why thank you little sister!"

"That's not what I meant… and I am _not_ your little sister, I'm _older _than you!"

**He was ten feet from the edge of the pit when we caught him and hauled him back up the slope. The other winged shoe tugged itself off, circled around us angrily and kicked our heads in protest before flying off into the chasm to join its twin.**

"Would you fly into Tartarus for me Arty?"

"No, and MY NAME ISN'T ARTY!"

Hermes sighed drawing a confused look from Hephaestus, "Why are they acting like that?"

"Um, Hermes, they _always _fight like that." The blacksmith replied carefully as though fearing for his brother's mental health, "Are you feeling okay?"

The other gods head snapped up as he came back into the conversation, noticing that he had spoken aloud, "Yes… No… What? Oh, no, not the twins, I was talking about my shoes."

Hephaestus shook his head uncertainly, "Er, okay?"

**We all collapsed, exhausted, on the obsidian gravel. My limbs felt like lead. Even my backpack seemed heavier, as if somebody had filled it with rocks.**

Athena's eyes widened at this last statement and she let out a whistle, "Clever."

"Care to explain?" Aphrodite shot her sister-in-law a look.

"Um, not yet."

**Grover was scratched up pretty bad. His hands were bleeding. His eyes had gone slit-pupiled, goat style, the way they did whenever he was terrified.**

"It's hilarious when he does that!" Travis said, making his eyes go wide and Connor laugh.

**"I don't know how ..." he panted. "I didn't..."**

**"Wait," I said. "Listen."**

**I heard something—a deep whisper in the darkness.**

**Another few seconds, and Annabeth said, "Percy, this place—"**

**"Shh." I stood.**

**The sound was getting louder, a muttering, evil voice from far, far below us. Coming from the pit.**

The older gods all flinched again, they knew who this was.

**Grover sat up. "Wh—what's that noise?"**

**Annabeth heard it too, now. I could see it in her eyes. "Tartarus. The entrance to Tartarus." I uncapped Anaklusmos.**

Lots of people shivered involuntarily and the temperature seemed to drop down a few degrees.

**The bronze sword expanded, gleaming in the darkness, and the evil voice seemed to falter, just for a moment, before resuming its chant.**

**I could almost make out words now, ancient, ancient words, older even than Greek. As if ...**

**"Magic," I said.**

**"We have to get out of here," Annabeth said.**

**Together, we dragged Grover to his hooves and started back up the tunnel. My legs wouldn't move fast enough. My backpack weighed me down.**

"I take it you've figured it out then Mom?" Annabeth asked across the room. The goddess nodded her head in response making her daughter sigh, "Okay, just don't tell anyone, we don't want to ruin the surprise."

Artemis looked between the two, eyes mouth falling open as the conversation finally made sense.

"Is the…"

"Yes." Athena cut her sister off quickly while everyone else in the room (who did not know what was going on) watched the exchange with growing agitation. Hades, who had got bored and read ahead, smiled and continued.

**The voice got louder and angrier behind us, and we broke into a run.**

**Not a moment too soon.**

**A cold blast of wind pulled at our backs, as if the entire pit were inhaling. For a terrifying moment, I lost ground, my feet slipping in the gravel. If we'd been any closer to the edge, we would've been sucked in.**

Poseidon whimpered even though the book said that his son had got away in time.

**We kept struggling forward, and finally reached the top of the tunnel, where the cavern widened out into the Fields of Asphodel. The wind died. A wail of outrage echoed from deep in the tunnel. Something was not happy we'd gotten away.**

**"What**_**was **_**that?" Grover panted, when****we'd**__**collapsed in the relative safety of a black poplar grove. "One of Hades's pets?"**

Hades snorted, "Even I wouldn't keep him as a pet!"

**Annabeth and I looked at each other. I could tell she was nursing an idea, probably the same one she'd gotten during the taxi ride to L.A., but she was too scared to share it. That was enough to terrify me.**

**I capped my sword, put the pen back in my pocket. "Let's keep going." I looked at Grover. "Can you walk?"**

**He swallowed. "Yeah, sure. I never liked those shoes, anyway."**

"HEY!"

"Oh, be sensible Hermes, the shoes just tried to kill him!" Hera snapped.

**He tried to sound brave about it, but he was trembling as badly as Annabeth and I were. Whatever was in that pit was nobody's pet. It was unspeakably old and powerful. Even Echidna hadn't given me that feeling. I was almost relieved to turn my back on that tunnel and head toward the palace of Hades.**

"Is it really that bad?" Piper asked and, to everyone's shock, it was Nico who answered.

"You have no idea. I've only been in there once and it nearly drove me mad." It was impossible to miss the haunted look in his eye, but he let Hazel come over and hug him tightly. All of the gods and half of the demigods looked at the son of Hades in shock, they didn't know what was more surprising however, the fact that he had been to Tartarus or the fact that he had survived.

**Almost.**

**The Furies circled the parapets, high in the gloom. The outer walls of the fortress glittered black, and the two-story-tall bronze gates stood wide open.**

**Up close, I saw that the engravings on the gates were scenes of death. Some were from modern times—an atomic bomb exploding over a city, a trench filled with gas mask-wearing soldiers, a line of African famine victims waiting with empty bowls—but all of them looked as if they'd been etched into the bronze thousands of years ago. I wondered if I was looking at prophecies that had come true.**

Hades shrugged, "Some are, some aren't."

**Inside the courtyard was the strangest garden I'd ever seen. Multicolored mushrooms, poisonous shrubs, and weird luminous plants grew without sunlight. Precious jewels made up for the lack of flowers, piles of rubies as big as my fist, clumps of raw diamonds. Standing here and there like frozen party guests were Medusa's garden statues— petrified children, satyrs, and centaurs—all smiling grotesquely.**

Demeter flinched, looking at Persephone, "That is your garden daughter?"

The queen of the dead sighed. "I think it looks pretty."

**In the center of the garden was an orchard of pomegranate trees, their orange blooms neon bright in the dark. "The garden of Persephone," Annabeth said. "Keep walking."**

The goddess grinned wickedly at this.

**I understood why she wanted to move on. The tart smell of those pomegranates was almost overwhelming. I had a sudden desire to eat them, but then I remembered the story of Persephone. One bite of Underworld food, and we would never be able to leave.**

"Yes, but some people's daughters aren't that fortunate!" Demeter sniffed, glaring t her brother.

Persephone scowled at her mother, "Get over it, I actually like it there!"

**I pulled Grover away to keep him from picking a big juicy one.**

Again, Zeus looked like he was going to comment, but another look from his youngest daughter silenced him pretty quickly.

**We walked up the steps of the palace, between black columns, through a black marble portico, and into the house of Hades. The entry hall had a polished bronze floor, which seemed to boil in the reflected torchlight. There was no ceiling, just the cavern roof, far above. I guess they never had to worry about rain down here.**

A few of the demigods laughed at this, but it did nothing towards breaking the tension that was steadily growing in the room once again.

**Every side doorway was guarded by a skeleton in military gear. Some wore Greek armor, some British redcoat uniforms, some camouflage with tattered American flags on the shoulders. They carried spears or muskets or M-16s. None of them bothered us, but their hollow eye sockets followed us as we walked down the hall, toward the big set of doors at the opposite end.**

**Two U.S. Marine skeletons guarded the doors. They grinned down at us, rocket-propelled grenade launchers held across their chests.**

"Now that's my kind of party!" Ares cheered making everyone look at him as though he had gone insane.

"Dionysus honey?" Hera called across the room sweetly. A little dazed by her tone, the wine god lifted his head from where he was pretending to be asleep.

"Yes?"

"Could you take a look at your brother for me please?" She said this with a puppy dog pout that had the others trying not to laugh, who ever knew that their step mother could be so innocent? Mr D just replied in a bored voice however,

"Sorry, I'm afraid that even I can't treat madness of that caliber!"

Now the room filled with laughter in earnest as the war god spluttered in his chair, trying to make sense of the insult.

**"You know," Grover mumbled, "I bet Hades doesn't have trouble with door-to-door salesmen."**

**My backpack weighed a ton now.**

"Something's wrong with that bag…" Hephaestus muttered to himself before his eyes went wide, seeing this, his wife leant over.

"Darling, would you please tell me what it is?"

A slightly dazed god whispered the answer in her ear and he was rewarded with a rather long kiss that made Ares scowl even more.

**I couldn't figure out why. I wanted to open it, check to see if I had somehow picked up a stray bowling ball, but this wasn't the time.**

Nico snorted. "Yes, because there are so many bowling bowls knocking around the underworld!"

**"Well, guys," I said. "I suppose we should ... knock?"**

**A hot wind blew down the corridor, and the doors swung open. The guards stepped aside.**

**"I guess that means**_**entrez-vous," **_**Annabeth said.**

"Ooooh, you speak French!" Aphrodite squealed in approval.

**The room inside looked just like in my dream, except this time the throne of Hades was occupied.**

**He was the third god**

"Fourth dear." Hestia reminded him gently.

"Sorry lady Hestia, but I didn't realize it was you at the time."

**I'd met, but the first who really struck me as godlike.**

Hades burst out laughing at his as his nephews spluttered in indignation.

"Are you saying I'm not godlike punk?" Ares spat at Percy before he was once again drenched in sea water. The son of Poseidon looked up smiling.

"Well, you ran from mechanical spiders, call your parents 'mommy' and 'daddy' and I managed to beat your daughter up without even touching her, you do the maths!

All of the other gods cracked up now, but before the war god (and his daughter) could take any form of revenge, the Lord of the dead read on.

**He was at least ten feet tall, for one thing, and dressed in black silk robes and a crown of braided gold. His skin was albino white, his hair shoulder-length and jet black. He wasn't bulked up like Ares, but he radiated power. He lounged on his throne of fused human bones, looking lithe, graceful, and dangerous as a panther.**

**I immediately felt like he should be giving the orders. He knew more than I did. He should be my master.**

"Yes, I should be." Hades murmured.

"Wow, look at you being so obedient." Thalia laughed, poking Percy in the ribs as he went bright red and tried to hide in Annabeth's hair.

**Then I told myself to snap out of it.**

"Good boy, he should only respond to _me _like that!" Zeus commented smugly while his nephew simply rolled his eyes, wisely deciding not to burst his bubble.

**Hades's aura was affecting me, just as Ares's had. The Lord of the Dead resembled pictures I'd seen of Adolph Hitler, or Napoleon, or the terrorist leaders who direct suicide bombers. Hades had the same intense eyes, the same kind of mesmerizing, evil charisma.**

"HEY!" Nico defended his dad even though the god in question was actually smiling.

"Ah, I loved those two. They were some of my favorite children."

All the demigods just looked at him in shock and his son managed to choke out,

"Hitler was me half-brother?" His father nodded and Nico got a evil look in his eye, "Cool!"

There was a sound of scraping while everyone tried to move away from the demented child and his father who were supporting similar looks of wickedness.

Persephone sighed dreamily, "Doesn't he look cute when he does that?"

Leo smirked, yet another resident for him!

**"You are brave to come here, Son of Poseidon," he said in an oily voice. "After what you have done to me, very brave indeed. Or perhaps you are simply very foolish."**

"Foolish!" Came the unanimous answer from the demigods that left Percy pouting, well, until Annabeth decided to kiss the wound to his pride better.

**Numbness crept into my joints, tempting me to lie down and just take a little nap at Hades's feet. Curl up here and sleep forever.**

All the demigods snickered along with half of the gods. Percy went back to hiding.

**I fought the feeling and stepped forward. I knew what I had to say. "Lord and Uncle, I come with two requests."**

"Idiot, don't start with demands!" Thalia snickered.

"Yeah, at least ask him how he is first." Jason followed on from his sister before cringing.

"What's up?" She turned back to him, a look of concern on her face.

"We sound like _them_!" He pointed his finger towards the Stolls setting everyone off laughing again.

**Hades raised an eyebrow. When he sat forward in his throne, shadowy faces appeared in the folds of his black robes, faces of torment, as if the garment were stitched of trapped souls from the Fields of Punishment, trying to get out. The ADHD part of me wondered, off-task, whether the rest of his clothes were made the same way. What horrible things would you have to do in your life to get woven into Hades's underwear?**

Hades smirked and the laughter in the room continued.

**"Only two requests?" Hades said. "Arrogant child. As if you have not already taken enough. Speak, then. It amuses me not to strike you dead yet."**

**I swallowed. This was going about as well as I'd feared.**

**I glanced at the empty, smaller throne next to Hades's. It was shaped like a black flower, gilded with gold. I wished Queen Persephone were here. I recalled something in the myths about how she could calm her husband's moods.**

Persephone grinned proudly, "Yes, yes I can."

**But it was summer. Of course, Persephone would be above in the world of light with her mother, the goddess of agriculture, Demeter. Her visits, not the tilt of the planet, create the seasons.**

**Annabeth cleared her throat. Her finger prodded me in the back.**

**"Lord Hades," I said. "Look, sir, there can't be a war among the gods. It would be ... bad."**

**"Really bad," Grover added helpfully.**

"Wow Grover, we hadn't figured that out yet, thanks for the information." Travis snickered into his hand.

**"Return Zeus's master bolt to me," I said. "Please, sir. Let me carry it to Olympus."**

"I don't have the blasted bolt!" Hades complained.

**Hades's eyes grew dangerously bright. "You dare keep up this pretense, after what you have done?"**

**I glanced back at my friends. They looked as confused as I was.**

**"Um ... Uncle," I said. "You keep saying 'after what you've done.' What exactly have I done?"**

**The throne room shook with a tremor so strong, they probably felt it upstairs in Los Angeles. Debris fell from the cavern ceiling. Doors burst open all along the walls, and skeletal warriors marched in, hundreds of them, from every time period and nation in Western civilization. They lined the perimeter of the room, blocking the exits.**

**Hades bellowed, "Do you think I**_**want **_**war, godling?"**

"Um… yes?" Leo whispered to Piper before she hit him round the head again.

**I wanted to say,**_**Well, these guys don't look like peace activists.**_

Several people laughed.

"S-sorry Uncle." Percy stammered out under Hades' murderous glare.

**But I thought that might be a dangerous answer.**

**"You are the Lord of the Dead," I said carefully. "A war would expand your kingdom, right?"**

**"A typical thing for my brothers to say! Do you think I need more subjects? Did you not see the sprawl of the Asphodel Fields?"**

**"Well..."**

**"Have you any idea how much my kingdom has swollen in this past century alone, how many subdivisions I've had to open?"**

**I opened my mouth to respond, but Hades was on a roll now.**

A few more laughs at this while Hades scowled around the room

**"More security ghouls," he moaned. "Traffic problems at the judgment pavilion. Double overtime for the staff. I used to be a rich god, Percy Jackson. I control all the precious metals under the earth. But my expenses!"**

**"Charon wants a pay raise," I blurted, just remembering the fact.**

Yet more laughter as Annabeth turned to face her boyfriend,

"I could have killed you when you said that!"

Percy just smirked at her before pulling himself close enough to kiss her again, muttering, "I blame the ADHD."

**As soon as I said it, I wished I could sew up my mouth.**

**"Don't get me started on Charon!" Hades yelled. "He's been impossible ever since he discovered Italian suits! Problems everywhere, and I've got to handle all of them personally. The commute time alone from the palace to the gates is enough to drive me insane! And the dead just keep arriving.**_**No,**_**godling. I need no help getting subjects! I did not ask for this war."**

**"But you took Zeus's master bolt."**

Hades growled while Nico and Hazel glared at Percy. Persephone was the only one from their little family that was finding the entire situation quite amusing.

**"Lies!" More rumbling. Hades rose from his throne, towering to the height of a football goalpost. "Your father may fool Zeus, boy, but I am not so stupid. I see his plan."**

"Yes because kelp head over there has enough of a brain to think up _any _plan!" Athena muttered under her breath.

**"His plan?"**

_**"You **_**were the thief on the winter solstice," he said. "Your father thought to keep you his little secret. He directed you into the throne room on Olympus, You took the master bolt**_**and**___**my helmet.**

"SOMEONE STOLE MY HELMET!" Hades yelled, glaring daggers at Percy who flinched.

"Uncle you can't honestly think that I stole it, you've just been reading my thoughts for crying out loud!"

Hestia stood and stepped up to her brother's side before talking to him soothingly. "The boy makes a valid point brother, he did not steal your helm, but I am sure that you will get it back. Remember the prophecy?"

"You will find what is stolen and see it safely returned." Apollo quoted instantly, "The prophecy must have been talking about that as well as the master bolt."

Oblivious to the other conversation, Zeus turned to glare at Poseidon, "Why is it, _brother, _that you are the only one who _hasn't _had something stolen?"

The sea god scoffed, "Maybe that's because I actually look after my things, unlike _some _pe…"

"WILL EVERYONE JUST _SHUT UP!"_ Everyone turned to look at the Queen of the gods who went over, took the book from her brother's hand and began reading.

**Had I not sent my Fury to discover you at Yancy Academy, Poseidon might have succeeded in hiding his scheme to start a war. But now you have been forced into the open. You will be exposed as Poseidon's thief, and I will have my helmet back!"**

**"But ..." Annabeth spoke. I could tell her mind was going a million miles an hour. "Lord Hades, your helmet of darkness is missing, too?"**

**"Do not play innocent with me, girl. You and the satyr have been helping this hero—coming here to threaten me in Poseidon's name, no doubt—to bring me an ultimatum. Does Poseidon think I can be blackmailed into supporting him?"**

**"No!" I said. "Poseidon didn't—I didn't—"**

**"I have said nothing of the helmet's disappearance," Hades snarled, "because I had no illusions that anyone on Olympus would offer me the slightest justice, the slightest help. I can ill afford for word to get out that my most powerful weapon of fear is missing.**

"That is true. Just because he isn't a part of your council at any other time of year, it doesn't mean that you can ignore him. You're all a family; it should be safe for you to be able to ask each other for help, the same way that you should trust each other!" All the gods looked guiltily at where Thalia stood, glaring into the eyes of all of them.

"Dad shouldn't be left alone at times of like this just because he can't trust any of you to help." Nico continued. Percy sighed, now it was his time to speak.

"Though, of course, you do all have a history that is hard to forget, but we were sent back here to try and change the future and this is the only way we can see of doing that."

The 3 demigods had worked on what to say earlier, giving the most challenging parts to Thalia as she was harder to kill than the other two. The gods stilled looked around guiltily however, all apart from Hera who huffed and slouched in her seat.

"Good luck with that! I've been telling them the same thing for the last millennia!" Never the less, she still read on.

**So I searched for you myself, and when it was clear you were coming to me to deliver your threat, I did not try to stop you."**

**"You didn't try to stop us? But—"**

**"Return my helmet now, or I will stop death," Hades threatened. "That is my counterproposal. I will open the earth and have the dead pour back into the world. I will make your lands a nightmare. And you, Percy Jackson—**_**your **_**skeleton will lead my army out of Hades."**

Poseidon scowled, "You wouldn't dare!"

"Try me!"

**The skeletal soldiers all took one step forward, making their weapons ready.**

**At that point, I probably should have been terrified. The strange thing was, I felt offended. Nothing gets me angrier than being accused of something I didn't do. I've had a lot of experience with that.**

Leo laughed, "So basically, the Lord of the Dead just told you that he is going to kill you and start the apocalypse, and all you can think of is that he is accusing you of stealing something that you didn't take."

The son of Poseidon grinned, "Pretty much."

**"You're as bad as Zeus," I said. "You think I stole from you? That's why you sent the Furies after me?"**

**"Of course," Hades said.**

**"And the other monsters?"**

**Hades curled his lip. "I had nothing to do with them. I wanted no quick death for you—I wanted you brought before me alive so you might face every torture in the Fields of Punishment. Why do you think I let you enter my kingdom so easily?"**

_**"Easily?"**_

"Well, you did get there alive." Nico pointed out, making Percy and Annabeth glare at him, "What, I'm only saying what everyone else is thinking!"

"Actually Nico," Piper turned to grin at him, "I don't think that anyone else was thinking that."

**"Return my property!"**

Poseidon sighed, "He doesn't have your helmet brother!"

**"But I don't have your helmet. I came for the master bolt."**

**"Which you already possess!" Hades shouted. "You came here with it, little fool, thinking you could you threaten me!"**

Athena, Artemis, Aphrodite and Hephaestus all laughed as the others suddenly caught up to where they already were.

"It's in the bag!" Apollo shouted happily as soon as he got it, making all the demigods laugh at his enthusiasm but all of the gods turned to glare at Ares instead. The war god tried to hide in his seat.

"You don't know that."

**"But I didn't!"**

**"Open your pack, then."**

"How did the you not notice that Perce?" Connor laughed at him.

"Hey, I did remember, I noticed that the bag felt a lot heavier than before!"

**A horrible feeling struck me. The weight in my backpack, like a bowling ball. It couldn't be...**

**I slung it off my shoulder and unzipped it**_**. **_**Inside was a two-foot-long metal cylinder, spiked on both ends, humming with energy.**

"ARES!" Zeus howled, glaring at his son who was now trying to pretend that he was a lamp shade in the corner of the room.

"Yes daddy?"

"You're lucky I don't kill you right here and now!"

**"Percy," Annabeth said. "How—"**

**"I—I don't know. I don't understand."**

**"You heroes are always the same," Hades said. "Your pride makes you foolish, thinking you could bring such a weapon before me. I did not ask for Zeus's master bolt, but since it is here, you will yield it to me. I am sure it will make an excellent bargaining tool. And now ... my helmet. Where is it?"**

**I was speechless. I had no helm. I had no idea how the master bolt had gotten into my backpack. I wanted to think Hades was pulling some kind of trick. Hades was the bad guy.**

"But I'm _not _the bad guy!" Hades complained, whining like a little kid.

**But suddenly the world turned sideways. I realized I'd been played with. Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades had been set at each other's throats by someone else. The master bolt had been in the backpack, and I'd gotten the backpack from ...**

**"Lord Hades, wait," I said. "This is all a mistake."**

**"A mistake?" Hades roared.**

**The skeletons aimed their weapons. From high above, there was a fluttering of leathery wings, and the three Furies swooped down to perch on the back of their master's throne. The one with Mrs. Dodds's face grinned at me eagerly and flicked her whip.**

**"There is no mistake," Hades said. "I know why you have come—I know the**_**real**_**reason you brought the bolt. You came to bargain for**_**her**_**."**

**Hades loosed a ball of gold fire from his palm. It exploded on the steps in front of me, and there was my mother, frozen in a shower of gold, just as she was at the moment when the Minotaur began to squeeze her to death.**

"Mommy!" Baby Percy half cried, clutching Annabeth's leg from where he sat on the floor in front of his older self's chair.

"Awww," The girl cooed mockingly, turning to her boyfriend. "Can we keep him?"

"Ha ha very funny."

**I couldn't speak. I reached out to touch her, but the light was as hot as a bonfire.**

**"Yes," Hades said with satisfaction. "I took her. I knew, Percy Jackson, that you would come to bargain with me eventually. Return my helmet, and perhaps I will let her go. She is not dead, you know. Not yet. But if you displease me, that will change."**

**I thought about the pearls in my pocket. Maybe they could get me out of this. If I could just get my mom free...**

**"Ah, the pearls," Hades said, and my blood froze.**

"How did you even know about that?" Percy asked across the room.

"I read it in some book." The god replied with a grin, making the sun god clutch his chest in a mock heart attack.

"Did Uncle H just make a _joke?"_

"Oh, shut up Apollo!

**"Yes, my brother and his little tricks. Bring them forth, Percy Jackson."**

**My hand moved against my will and brought out the pearls.**

**"Only three," Hades said. "What a shame. You do realize each only protects a single person. Try to take your mother, then, little godling. And which of your friends will you leave behind to spend eternity with me? Go on. Choose. Or give me the backpack and accept my terms."**

"Ugh, I would hate to have to do that." Piper shuddered.

**I looked at Annabeth and Grover. Their faces were grim.**

**"We were tricked," I told them. "Set up."**

"Well no Peter…" Dionysus droned in an utterly bored voice.

**"Yes, but why?" Annabeth asked. "And the voice in the pit—"**

**"I don't know yet," I said. "But I intend to ask."**

**"Decide, boy!" Hades yelled.**

**"Percy." Grover put his hand on my shoulder. "You can't give him the bolt,"**

**"I know that."**

**"Leave me here," he said. "Use the third pearl on your mom."**

"Such a sweet satyr!" Hestia said smiling happily.

Percy beamed and leaned over to Thalia, "Grover is going to be so pleased when he hears about that compliment."

**"No!"**

**"I'm a satyr," Grover said. "We don't have souls like humans do. He can torture me until I die, but he won't get me forever. I'll just be reincarnated as a flower or something. It's the best way."**

"Yes, he must have had enough cereal in his diet!"

Percy's face fell, "I'm willing to bet he will be less thrilled about that one though."

**"No." Annabeth drew her bronze knife. "You two go on. Grover, you have to protect Percy. You have to get your searcher's license and start your quest for Pan. Get his mom out of here. I'll cover you. I plan to go down fighting."**

Athena bit her lip, trying not to scream at her daughters actions. Percy just pulled her closer.

"Have I ever told you how much I love you?"

"Yes, but you can say it again if you like."

"I love you." After about 5 more minutes of the two of them staring into each other's eyes, Travis made a noise like he was being sick making the happy couple look away with red faces. Aphrodite squealing in the background.

**"No way," Grover said. "I'm staying behind."**

**"Think again, goat boy," Annabeth said.**

"Um, that's all nice and all, but I think you should hurry up before Uncle H gets bored and kills all 3 of you." Hermes snickered.

**"Stop it, both of you!" I felt like my heart was being ripped in two. They had both been with me through so much. I remembered Grover dive-bombing Medusa in the statue garden, and Annabeth saving us from Cerberus; we'd survived Hephaestus's Waterland ride, the St. Louis Arch, the Lotus Casino. I had spent thousands of miles worried that I'd be betrayed by a friend, but these friends would never do that.**

"No, no we wouldn't!" All of Percy's friends turned to beam at him showing their trust in the boy.

**They had done nothing but save me, over and over, and now they wanted to sacrifice their lives for my mom.**

**"I know what to do," I said. "Take these."**

**I handed them each a pearl.**

**Annabeth said, "But, Percy ..."**

**I turned and faced my mother. I desperately wanted to sacrifice myself and use the last pearl on her, but I knew what she would say. She would never allow it. I had to get the bolt back to Olympus and tell Zeus the truth. I had to stop the war. She would never forgive me if I saved her instead. I thought about the prophecy made at Half-Blood Hill, what seemed like a million years ago.**_**You will fail to save what matters most in the end.**_

Percy's eyes went misty, even after all the years, he still hadn't quite gotten over all that he had gone through to save her but failing in the end. His face drew a sympathetic smile from many of the assembled goddesses and mocking ones from some of the gods.

**"I'm sorry," I told her. "I'll be back. I'll find a way."**

**The smug look on Hades's face faded. He said, "Godling ... ?"**

**"I'll find your helmet, Uncle," I told him. "I'll return it. Remember about Charon's pay raise."**

**"Do not defy me—"**

"Like that's going to work." Travis snickered under his breath, not wanting to get blasted by the angry god.

**"And it wouldn't hurt to play with Cerberus once in a while. He likes red rubber balls."**

"I'll play with him when I get back!" Nico called.

**"Percy Jackson, you will not—"**

**I shouted, "Now, guys!"**

**We smashed the pearls at our feet. For a scary moment, nothing happened.**

**Hades yelled, "Destroy them!"**

**The army of skeletons rushed forward, swords out, guns clicking to full automatic. The Furies lunged, their whips bursting into flame.**

**Just as the skeletons opened fire, the pearl fragments at my feet exploded with a burst of green light and a gust of fresh sea wind. I was encased in a milky white sphere, which was starting to float off the ground.**

**Annabeth and Grover were right behind me. Spears and bullets sparked harmlessly off the pearl bubbles as we floated up. Hades yelled with such rage, the entire fortress shook and I knew it was not going to be a peaceful night in L.A.**

**"Look up.'" Grover yelled. "We're going to crash!"**

**Sure enough, we were racing right toward the stalactites, which I figured would pop our bubbles and skewer us.**

**"How do you control these things?" Annabeth shouted.**

**"I don't think you do!" I shouted back.**

**We screamed as the bubbles slammed into the ceiling and ... Darkness.**

**Were we dead?**

Connor went up and started poking Percy in the face, "Nope, you're good."

The son of the sea glared at him, "Thank you so much for telling me that, I hadn't noticed."

**No, I could still feel the racing sensation. We were going up, right through solid rock as easily as an air bubble in water. That was the power of the pearls, I realized—**_**What belongs to the sea will always return to the sea.**_

**For a few moments, I couldn't see anything outside the smooth walls of my sphere, then my pearl broke through on the ocean floor. The two other milky spheres, Annabeth and Grover, kept pace with me as we soared upward through the water. And—**_**ker-blam!**_

**We exploded on the surface, in the middle of the Santa Monica Bay, knocking a surfer off his board with an indignant, "Dude!"**

"Haha, man, I wish I was there." Apollo sighed happily, making some plans for 6 years into the future.

**I grabbed Grover and hauled him over to a life buoy. I caught Annabeth and dragged her over too. A curious shark was circling us, a great white about eleven feet long.**

**I said, "Beat it."**

**The shark turned and raced away.**

"Percy, that wasn't very nice, he was probably only checking to see if you were okay."

"Sorry dad."

**The surfer screamed something about bad mushrooms and paddled away from us as fast as he could.**

**Somehow, I knew what time it was: early morning, June 21, the day of the summer solstice.**

"Okay, now that's just strange!" Nico looked a little freaked out by this as he looked at his cousin. Thankfully Piper came to his rescue .

"Says the boy who lived in a jar for 6 days, surviving off of pomegranate seeds!" Nico flinched while everyone else in the room (bar Leo and Jason) looked between them in shock. Just what were they talking about?

**In the distance, Los Angeles was on fire, plumes of smoke rising from neighborhoods all over the city. There had been an earthquake, all right, and it was Hades's fault. He was probably sending an army of the dead after me right now.**

**But at the moment, the Underworld wasn't my biggest problem.**

**I had to get to shore. I had to get Zeus's thunderbolt back to Olympus. Most of all, I had to have a serious conversation with the god who'd tricked me.**

Hera shut the book with a snap, "That's the end of the chapter, who wants to read next?"

Eagerly, Poseidon reached over for it, "I want to know what happens next, so I'll read."

He flipped through the pages until he found the right one before he whimpered again.

Zeus sighed, "What does it say brother?"

"**I Battle my Jerk Relative."**

Everyone turned to glare at Ares before Percy burst out laughing. "Oh, this is going to be good!"


	22. I Battle my Jerk Relative

**"****I Battle my Jerk Relative,"**

Poseidon began reading but was forced to stop by the large outburst of laughter coming from the demigods.

"Oh, I remember that!" Annabeth laughed shooting a mocking look at Ares who just scowled in response.

**A Coast Guard boat picked us up,**

"And they didn't wonder how three kids, in street clothing, ended up in the middle of the bay?" Athena asked incredulously before Poseidon cracked up laughing earning himself a glare from the goddess of wisdom. "What?"

Instead of answering, the Lord of the seas simply read on.

**but they were too busy to keep us for long, or to wonder how three kids in street clothes had gotten out into the middle of the bay.**

Now it was the turn of the Olympians to laugh. Thankful that the attention had been turned away from him, Ares even seemed secure enough to joke.

"Wow, looks like old owl head thinks the same as her hated sea rat!"

A flock of the afore mentioned birds attacking the god of war was enough to end that conversation however.

**There was a disaster to mop up. Their radios were jammed with distress calls.**

**They dropped us off at the Santa Monica Pier with towels around our shoulders and water bottles that said I'M A JUNIOR COAST GUARD! and sped off to save more people.**

"Yay, free stuff!" Connor cheered.

**Our clothes were sopping wet, even mine. When the Coast Guard boat had appeared, I'd silently prayed they wouldn't pick me out of the water and find me perfectly dry, which might've raised some eyebrows.**

"Again…"

"Shut up Nico, I know you are jealous of my awesome powers, but so is everyone!" Percy said with a smirk cutting the younger boy off.

**So I'd willed myself to get soaked. Sure enough, my usual waterproof magic had abandoned me. I was also barefoot, because I'd given my shoes to Grover.**

"Wow, Perce is just full of good ideas today!" Thalia smirked.

**Better the Coast Guard wonder why one of us was barefoot than wonder why one of us had hooves.**

"Wouldn't the mist cover that though?" The blacksmith wondered aloud, in response, the daughter of Athena merely shrugged.

"We didn't want to take any chances."

**After reaching dry land, we stumbled down the beach, watching the city burn against a beautiful sunrise. I felt as if I'd just come back from the dead**

"You just did, Kelp head!" Nico laughed into his hand.

—**which I had. My back pack was heavy with Zeus's master bolt. My heart was even heavier from seeing my mother.**

**"I don't believe it," Annabeth said. "We went all that way—"**

**It was a trick," I said. "A strategy worthy of Athena."**

Athena glanced at Percy, "I don't know whether to take that as an insult of a compliment."

The son of the sea gulped under her glare, quickly answering her unspoken question. "I assure you that it was meant as a compliment Lady Athena."

The goddess of wisdom humphed, but didn't press the matter any further.

**"Hey," she warned.**

**"You get it, don't you?"**

**She dropped her eyes, her anger fading. "Yeah. I get it."**

**"Well, I don't!" Grover complained. "Would somebody—"**

**"Percy ..." Annabeth said. "I'm sorry about your mother. I'm so sorry..."**

**I pretended not to hear her. If I talked about my mother, I was going to start crying like a little kid.**

Clarisse started laughing as Percy's face went bright red, the small boy at his feet started whimpering sadly until Annabeth leant down and pulled him into a hug.

**"The prophecy was right," I said. "You shall go west and face the god who has turned.' But it wasn't Hades.**

"THAT'S WHAT I'VE BEEN SAYING ALL ALONG!" Hades yelled as all the other gods flinched.

"Yes brother, but you didn't need to shout. I was actually under the impression that we had all figured it out actually." Demeter sniffed. Aiming to avoid another argument amongst his siblings, Poseidon hurriedly read on.

**Hades didn't want war among the Big Three. Someone else pulled off the theft. Someone stole Zeus's master bolt, and Hades' helm, and framed me because I'm Poseidon's kid. Poseidon will get blamed by both sides. By sundown today, there will be a three-way war. And I'll have caused it."**

"You didn't cause it though." Rachel pointed out. Whereas Percy just sighed,

"I know, but Zeus would still have thought that I had stolen the bolt and Hades the helm so I might as well as started the whole thing."

**Grover shook his head, mystified. "But who would be that sneaky? Who would want war that bad?"**

"Oh, I don't know, maybe the one who gave the boy the bag in the first place." Artemis said with a pointed glare at her half brother. Once again, all eyes in the room fell on Ares.

"You have no proof!" The war god defended himself.

**I stopped in my tracks, looking down the beach. "Gee, let me think."**

**There he was, waiting for us, in his black leather duster and his sunglasses, an aluminum baseball bat propped on his shoulder. His motorcycle rumbled beside him, its head light turning the sand red.**

**"Hey, kid," Ares said, seeming genuinely pleased to see me. "You were supposed to die."**

Poseidon growled. "There's all the proof we need!"

Ares yelped as a marlin suddenly fell from the sky and impaled his leg, causing ichor to run in rivulets down the side of his throne.

**"You tricked me," I said.**_**"You**_**stole the helm and the master bolt."**

"Not directly." Hermes said, "But I can't wait to find out who stole it for you."

Athena and Artemis were the only ones to notice a shudder run through most of the demigods at their brother's words.

**Ares grinned. "Well, now, I didn't steal them personally. Gods taking each other's symbols of power—that's a big no-no. But you're not the only hero in the world who can run errands."**

**"Who did you use? Clarisse? She was there at the winter solstice."**

**The idea seemed to amuse him. "Doesn't matter. The point is, kid, you're impeding the war effort. See, you've got to die in the Underworld. Then Old Seaweed will be mad at Hades for killing you. Corpse Breath will have Zeus's master bolt, so Zeus'll be mad at**_**him.**_**And Hades is still looking for this …"**

Now it was Hades' turn to growl at his nephew who gave a yelp and jumped half way across the room. It looked like the hell hound was back, and this time, it brought some friends!

**From his pocket he took out a ski cap—the kind bank robbers wear—and placed it between the handlebars of his bike. Immediately, the cap transformed into an elaborate bronze war helmet.**

A yelp came from where the god of war was backed up against the wall, surrounded by a heard of vicious beasts from the underworld, but no one gave it any mind. Instead, they were too busy discussing the events in the book.

"I don't get it." Athena conceded at last, "This plan is way too complex for him to have come up with! Maybe…"

"We are not going to talk about it!" Zeus cut off his daughter mid though, waving his brother on with the story.

**"The helm of darkness," Grover gasped.**

**"Exactly," Ares said. "Now where was I? Oh yeah, Hades will be mad at both Zeus and Poseidon, because he doesn't know who took this. Pretty soon, we got a nice little three-way slugfest going."**

**"But they're your family!" Annabeth protested.**

"Yes, because that's going to matter a lot to him isn't it!" Dionysus droned, glaring at his older brother who was quickly becoming a chew toy.

**Ares shrugged. "Best kind of war. Always the bloodiest. Nothing like watching your relatives fight, I always say."**

Piper leaned across to Leo, "Someone needs some counseling sessions!"

Clarisse, hearing the last comment, moved to glare at the two.

**"You gave me the backpack in Denver," I said. "The master bolt was in there the whole time."**

**"Yes and no," Ares said. "It's probably too complicated for your little mortal brain to follow, but the backpack is the master bolt's sheath, just morphed a bit. The bolt is connected to it, sort of like that sword you got, kid. It always returns to your pocket, right?"**

"Again, way too complex for Ares!" Athena muttered.

"HEY!" The god of war, having won the fight when his uncle got bored, returned to his throne unhappily. "I'm not an idiot!"

There was an awkward silence in the room as no one moved to back him up on this.

**I wasn't sure how Ares knew about that, but I guess a god of war had to make it his business to know about weapons.**

**"Anyway," Ares continued, "I tinkered with the magic a bit, so the bolt would only return to the sheath once you reached the Underworld. You get close to Hades... Bingo, you got mail. If you died along the way—no loss.**

Poseidon said the last part through his teeth, glaring at his nephew all the while as Ares ducked, trying to avoid the attack of several angry owls. Hera looked between all three of them stunned and a little annoyed. The only time that her brother and step-daughter actually agreed on something and it was when they came together to attack her son, wasn't that just typical of her family?

**I still had the weapon."**

"Okay brother, we all know now that this is not your plan!" Athena glared at him again, "Who are you working for?"

"I work for no one!"

"You work for me Ares!"

"Yes daddy."

**"But why not just keep the master bolt for yourself?" I said. "Why send it to Hades?"**

**Ares got a twitch in his jaw. For a moment, it was almost as if he were listening to another voice, deep inside his head. "Why didn't I ... yeah ... with that kind of fire power ..."**

"Father…"

"Not now Athena, we will talk of this later, along with your brother's punishment!"

**He held the trance for one second ... two seconds...**

**I exchanged nervous looks with Annabeth.**

**Ares's face cleared. "I didn't want the trouble. Better to have you caught red-handed, holding the thing."**

**"You're lying," I said. "Sending the bolt to the Underworld wasn't your idea, was it?"**

**"Of course it was!" Smoke drifted up from his sun glasses, as if they were about to catch fire.**

"No it wasn't." Thalia told her half brother, "This was not your doing."

The god of war turned on her and looked as though he was about to say something, but a bolt of lightning hitting his chair soon stopped him in his tracks. Taking pity on his cousin, Percy decided that now was the time to speak up.

"Okay, can you all stop attacking him now, he gets punished enough in the future and this whole thing isn't even his fault!" _besides, _he thought, _he's going to get enough punishment before the end of the chapter._

**"You didn't order the theft," I guessed. "Someone else sent a hero to steal the two items. Then, when Zeus sent you to hunt him down, you caught the thief. But you didn't turn him over to Zeus. Something convinced you to let him go. You kept the items until another hero could come along and complete the delivery. That thing in the pit is ordering you around."**

All of the Olympians shifted uneasily in their thrones.

"Brother…" Hades started before Zeus quickly waved Poseidon on, cutting off whatever the Lord of the dead had started to say.

**"I am the god of war! I take orders from no one!**

"Except for Zeus!" Ares amended quickly at a growl from his father.

**I don't have dreams!"**

"Um, bro, no one said anything about dreams." Apollo pointed out as everyone was looking at the book curiously.

**I hesitated. "Who said anything about dreams?"**

**Ares looked agitated, but he tried to cover it with a smirk.**

**"Let's get back to the problem at hand, kid. You're alive. I can't have you taking that bolt to Olympus. You just might get those hard-headed idiots to listen to you. So I've got to kill you.**

"If you do Ares, you will wish that you were able to die!" Poseidon growled. To back him up, the room began to shake as an earthquake hit New York. Athena said nothing, but if only looks could kill…

**Nothing personal."**

"He's a twelve year old boy who just so happens to be the key towards stopping a war which is the reason why you are trying to kill him and you say 'nothing personal'?!" Hermes choked out. There was no one in the room who could quite believe what they were hearing at this point.

**He snapped his fingers. The sand exploded at his feet and out charged a wild boar, even larger and uglier than the one whose head hung above the door of cabin seven at Camp Half-Blood. The beast pawed the sand, glaring at me with beady eyes as it lowered its razor-sharp tusks and waited for the command to kill.**

Poseidon shot a worried look at his son who was leaning back in his chair, lazily pulling Annabeth's hair, before he carried on reading.

**I stepped into the surf. "Fight me yourself, Ares."**

**He laughed, but I heard a little edge to his laughter ... an uneasiness.**

"You little PUNK, you think that _I'm _scared of _you?"_

"Yes." Percy's answer set all the demigods around him laughing like no tomorrow, but Ares was not happy. Fearing for his son's life, the Lord of the seas quickly read on.

**"You've only got one talent, kid, running away. You ran from the Chimera. You ran from the Underworld. You don't have what it takes."**

"He's only twelve Ares." Demeter hissed.

**"Scared?"**

"No!" Ares almost pouted at the same time that the children of the big three all chorused, "YES!"

**"In your adolescent dreams." But his sunglasses were starting to melt from the heat of his eyes. "No direct involvement. Sorry, kid. You're not at my level."**

**Annabeth said, "Percy, run!"**

**The giant boar charged.**

**But I was done running from monsters. Or Hades, or Ares, or anybody.**

"I take it you get your confidence from the fact your standing in the water right now?" Kate asked him, looking a little stunned. Percy just shrugged in a 'what you gonna do' motion.

**As the boar rushed me, I uncapped my pen and side stepped. Riptide appeared in my hands. I slashed upward. The boar's severed right tusk fell at my feet, while the disoriented animal charged into the sea.**

**I shouted, "Wave!"**

**Immediately, a wave surged up from nowhere and engulfed the boar, wrapping around it like a blanket.**

**The beast squealed once in terror. Then it was gone, swallowed by the sea.**

The pride in Poseidon's voice as he read that last bit was undeniable.

"Nice one!" Apollo cheered, walking over to the demigod to pet him on the back.

**I turned back to Ares. "Are you going to fight me now?" I asked. "Or are you going to hide behind another pet?"**

"He's taunting you." Athena observed, smirking. If there was one thing she knew (and she knew a _lot _of things) it was that Ares was never able to keep a cool head whilst being taunted.

**Ares's face was purple with rage. "Watch it, kid. I could turn you into—"**

**"A cockroach," I said. "Or a tapeworm. Yeah, I'm sure. That'd save you from getting your godly hide whipped, wouldn't it?"**

"Wow Perce, you really are good at irritating gods aren't you." Rachel remarked, a huge grin on her face.

"What can I say, it's a gift!"

**Flames danced along the top of his glasses. "Oh, man, you are really asking to be smashed into a grease spot."**

**"If I lose, turn me into anything you want. Take the bolt. If I win, the helm and the bolt are mine and**_**you **_**have to go away."**

"Ugh, there goes my helmet."

"And my bolt."

"As always Uncles, the faith you have in me is astounding!" Percy pretended to look hurt but he couldn't stop himself from laughing which kind of ruined the whole image he was going for.

**Ares sneered.**

**He swung the baseball bat off his shoulder. "How would you like to get smashed: classic or modern?"**

Apollo laughed, "The boy is holding a sword Ares, which do you think?"

**I showed him my sword.**

Percy groaned and whispered, "Oh no, I think the same way as Apollo."

"You should be proud, it just means that you are as awesome as me!" The sun god cheered, the demigod on the other hand, face palmed and whispered, "Kill me now." To his friends, setting them all of again.

**"That's cool, dead boy," he said. "Classic it is." The baseball bat changed into a huge, two-handed sword. The hilt was a large silver skull with a ruby in its mouth.**

**"Percy," Annabeth said. "Don't do this. He's a god."**

**"He's a coward," I told her.**

"HEY!"

"You can't be mad at the boy for telling the truth!" Aphrodite responded, smirking across the room at her recently ex-boyfriend.

**She swallowed. "Wear this, at least. For luck."**

**She took off her necklace, with her five years' worth of camp beads and the ring from her father, and tied it around my neck.**

**"Reconciliation," she said. "Athena and Poseidon together."**

**My face felt a little warm, but I managed a smile. "Thanks."**

"Thanks for that by the way." He leaned forward to whisper in her ear, a movement that ended in another kiss, making Poseidon smirk and Athena look as though she was going to be sick.

**"And take this," Grover said. He handed me a flattened tin can that he'd probably been saving in his pocket for a thousand miles. "The satyrs stand behind you."**

**"Grover ... I don't know what to say."**

"Now that was a sweet gesture." Artemis nodded grudgingly, she hated complimenting males, but she felt that it had to be said. The mouths of the demigods fell open at this however.

"If Grover could have heard that…" Percy started.

"He would have been over the moon!" Annabeth finished as everyone in the room cracked up at her choice of words.

**He patted me on the shoulder. I stuffed the tin can in my back pocket.**

**"You all done saying good-bye?" Ares came toward me, his black leather duster trailing behind him, his sword glinting like fire in the sunrise. "I've been fighting for eternity, kid. My strength is unlimited and I cannot die. What have you got?"**

**A smaller ego, I thought,**

"Doesn't sound like it from here!" Nico joked, mock punching his cousins arm.

**but I said nothing. I kept my feet in the surf, backing into the water up to my ankles. I thought back to what Annabeth had said at the Denver diner, so long ago:**_**Ares has strength. That's all he has. Even strength has to bow down to wisdom sometimes.**_

"Wow, you actually paid attention for once seaweed brain!" Annabeth seemed genuinely shocked.

"Well, I have been known to do that from time to time you know."

**He cleaved downward at my head, but I wasn't there.**

**My body thought for me. The water seemed to push me into the air and I catapulted over him, slashing as I came down. But Ares was just as quick. He twisted, and the strike that should've caught him directly in the spine was deflected off the end of his sword hilt.**

Ares started laughing, "Prepare to get creamed brat!"

**He grinned. "Not bad, not bad."**

**He slashed again and I was forced to jump onto dry land.**

Poseidon flinched as Athena spoke up,

"There goes his only advantage!"

Ares continued laughing in the background, "Oh yes, I am _epic!"_

**I tried to sidestep, to get back to the water, but Ares seemed to know what I wanted.**

"It's not really hard Perce." Piper commented, "everyone would know that you wanted to get back into the sea."

**He out maneuvered me, pressing so hard I had to put all my concentration on not getting sliced into pieces. I kept backing away from the surf. I couldn't find any openings to attack. His sword had a reach several feet longer than Anaklusmos.**

_**Get in close,**_**Luke had told me once, back in our sword class.**_**When you've got the shorter blade, get in close.**_

Hermes beamed with pride not noticing that he was the only one who did or that the demigods, (and Athena having recently figured it out) were flinching in their chairs.

**I stepped inside with a thrust, but Ares was waiting for that.**

Apollo sighed dramatically. "Well, after several millennia fighting, even _Ares _would have picked up on a few _basic _concepts."

A second later, the two brothers were rolling around on the floor fighting, but nobody (bar the Romans who looked completely shocked) paid them any attention, focusing on the book instead.

**He knocked my blade out of my hands and kicked me in the chest. I went airborne—twenty, maybe thirty feet. I would've broken my back if I hadn't crashed into the soft sand of a dune.**

**"Percy!" Annabeth yelled. "Cops!"**

"And here comes the cavalry!" Nico sang darkly, drawing some strange looks from the people around him.

**I was seeing double. My chest felt like it had just been hit with a battering ram, but I managed to get to my feet.**

**I couldn't look away from Ares for fear he'd slice me in half, but out of the corner of my eye I saw red lights flashing on the shoreline boulevard. Car doors were slamming.**

**"There, officer!" somebody yelled. "See?"**

**A gruff cop voice: "Looks like that kid on TV ... what the heck ..."**

**"That guy's armed," another cop said. "Call for backup."**

**I rolled to one side as Ares's blade slashed the sand.**

**I ran for my sword, scooped it up, and launched a swipe at Ares's face, only to find my blade deflected again.**

**Ares seemed to know exactly what I was going to do the moment before I did it.**

"Oh yes, I'm amazing!" Ares cheered, returning to his seat, a small cut spilling gold down from his mouth. Percy just grinned, deciding not to ruin the god's fun, after all, he wouldn't be able to enjoy this much longer.

**I stepped back toward the surf, forcing him to follow.**

**"Admit it, kid," Ares said. "You got no hope. I'm just toying with you."**

**My senses were working overtime. I now understood what Annabeth had said about ADHD keeping you alive in battle. I was wide awake, noticing every little detail.**

**I could see where Ares was tensing. I could tell which way he would strike. At the same time, I was aware of Annabeth and Grover, thirty feet to my left. I saw a second cop car pulling up, siren wailing. Spectators, people who had been wandering the streets because of the earthquake, were starting to gather. Among the crowd, I thought I saw a few who were walking with the strange, trotting gait of disguised satyrs. There were shimmering forms of spirits, too, as if the dead had risen from Hades to watch the battle. I heard the flap of leathery wings circling somewhere above.**

Athena groaned, "Just perfect, even if you do survive Ares, you have Hades' minions to get past. Do you mind telling us how you are alive?"

Annabeth laughed, "We keep asking ourselves that mother, but even we can't answer it."

**More sirens.**

**I stepped farther into the water, but Ares was fast. The tip of his blade ripped my sleeve and grazed my forearm.**

**A police voice on a megaphone said, "Drop the guns.' Set them on the ground. Now!"**

**Guns?**

"The mist again!." Hermes grinned.

**I looked at Ares's weapon, and it seemed to be flickering; sometimes it looked like a shotgun, sometimes a two-handed sword. I didn't know what the humans were seeing in my hands, but I was pretty sure it wouldn't make them like me.**

**Ares turned to glare at our spectators, which gave me a moment to breathe. There were five police cars now, and a line of officers crouching behind them, pistols trained on us.**

**"This is a private matter!" Ares bellowed. "Be gone."**

"Yes, because that's s_o _going to make them leave." Travis rolled his eyes.

**He swept his hand, and a wall of red flame rolled across the patrol cars. The police barely had time to dive for cover before their vehicles exploded. The crowd behind them scattered, screaming.**

"You couldn't have even tried for some subtlety there?" Zeus groaned, "At least _try_ and make it look like an accident!"

"Sorry Daddy."

**Ares roared with laughter. "Now, little hero. Let's add you to the barbecue."**

**He slashed. I deflected his blade. I got close enough to strike, tried to fake him out with a feint, but my blow was knocked aside. The waves were hitting me in the back now. Ares was up to his thighs, wading in after me.**

Poseidon started laughing as Artemis smirked. "Not your best idea in the world, following the boy into where he is strongest!"

**I felt the rhythm of the sea, the waves growing larger as the tide rolled in, and suddenly I had an idea. **_**Little waves,**_**I thought. And the water behind me seemed to recede. I was holding back the tide by force of will, but tension was building, like carbonation behind a cork.**

Athena gasped, "As much as I hate to say it, that just might work!" Ares was no longer laughing, he didn't like where this was going.

**Ares came toward, grinning confidently. I lowered my blade, as if I were too exhausted to go on.**_**Wait for it,**_**I told the sea. The pressure now was almost lifting me off my feet. Ares raised his sword. I released the tide and jumped, rocketing straight over Ares on a wave.**

**A six-foot wall of water smashed him full in the face, leaving him cursing and sputtering with a mouth full of seaweed.**

Laughter soon broke the shocked silence that had filled the room as all the demigods cheered. Ares, on the other hand, was sitting in his chair, growling loud enough to make the room shake, not that anyone cared.

**I landed behind him with a splash and feinted toward his head, as I'd done before. He turned in time to raise his sword, but this time he was disoriented, he didn't anticipate the trick. I changed direction, lunged to the side, and stabbed Riptide straight down into the water, sending the point through the god's heel.**

"YES!" Hermes cheered, "How does it feel to be beaten by a kid with no battle training?"

The god in question, under the glare of his father and uncle, settled for slouching in his throne, pouting like a preschooler.

**The roar that followed made Hades's earthquake look like a minor event. The very sea was blasted back from Ares, leaving a wet circle of sand fifty feet wide.**

**Ichor, the golden blood of the gods, flowed from a gash in the war god's boot. The expression on his face was beyond hatred. It was pain, shock, complete disbelief that he'd been wounded.**

"You do realize that you just made a really powerful enemy there?" Hephaestus asked the boy, sounding more shocked than anything else. Percy just grinned in response,

"I've had worse."

**He limped toward me, muttering ancient Greek curses.**

**Something stopped him.**

**It was as if a cloud covered the sun, but worse. Light faded. Sound and color drained away. A cold, heavy presence passed over the beach, slowing time, dropping the temperature to freezing, and making me feel like life was hopeless, fighting was useless.**

The throne room went silent.

"I-it c-can't be, he's meant to be in the very depths of Tartarus!" The queen of the gods just managed to stutter out, gripping her husband's hand for support. "Please tell me it isn't"

No one answered her and Poseidon read on into the unnatural quiet.

**The darkness lifted.**

**Ares looked stunned.**

**Police cars were burning behind us. The crowd of spectators had fled. Annabeth and Grover stood on the beach, in shock, watching the water flood back around Ares's feet, his glowing golden ichor dissipating in the tide.**

**Ares lowered his sword.**

**"You have made an enemy, godling,"**

Nico laughed, trying to break the tension in the room. "For Percy, that's nothing new!" The attempt didn't work.

**he told me. "You have sealed your fate. Every time you raise your blade in battle, every time you hope for success, you will feel my curse. Beware, Perseus Jackson. Beware."**

"Ugh, that curse was really irritating, still is for a matter of fact." Percy flinched, remembering the time it affected him most.

"Good." The war god growled.

**His body began to glow.**

"I can't believe you just did that!" Poseidon looked murderous, but he carried on reading none the less.

**'''Percy!" Annabeth shouted. "Don't watch!"**

**I turned away as the god Ares revealed his true immortal form. I somehow knew that if I looked, I would disintegrate into ashes.**

**The light died.**

**I looked back. Ares was gone. The tide rolled out to reveal Hades's bronze helm of darkness. I picked it up and walked toward my friends.**

"Yes, I get my helm back!" Hades cheered while Apollo faked a heart attack and whispered to Hermes.

"You know, I have never seen him look so cheerful!"

This received a glare from his uncle hat set the entire room off laughing again, apart from Ares who was glaring at everything that moved.

**But before I got there, I heard the flapping of leathery wings. Three evil-looking grandmothers with lace hats and fiery whips drifted down from the sky and landed in front of me.**

"Furies…" Poseidon groaned, "I'd forgotten about them."

**The middle Fury, the one who had been Mrs. Dodds, stepped forward. Her fangs were bared, but for once she didn't look threatening. She looked more disappointed, as if she'd been planning to have me for supper, but had decided I might give her indigestion.**

"Or that you'd be too salty to swallow." Nico added causing everyone to burst out laughing again.

**"We saw the whole thing," she hissed. "So ... it truly was not you?"**

"See, I did nothing wrong!" Percy pouted like a little kid as everyone else laughed around him.

**I tossed her the helmet, which she caught in surprise.**

**"Return that to Lord Hades," I said. "Tell him the truth. Tell him to call off the war."**

**She hesitated, then ran a forked tongue over her green, leathery lips. "Live well, Percy Jackson. Become a true hero. Because if you do not, if you ever come into my clutches again …"**

**She cackled, savoring the idea. Then she and her sisters rose on their bats' wings, fluttered into the smoke-filled sky, and disappeared.**

**I joined Grover and Annabeth, who were staring at me in amazement.**

"I really did think that you were going to die." Annabeth told him sheepishly, "But I'm glad that you didn't."

"Thanks wise girl, that means a lot."

**"Percy ..." Grover said. "That was so incredibly ..."**

**"Terrifying," said Annabeth.**

**"Cool!" Grover corrected.**

"WE AGREE WITH GROVER!" Most of the demigods cheered causing Annabeth to pout. Seeing this, Percy leaned forward and kissed her.

"Don't worry, I thought it was terrifying!"

**I didn't feel terrified. I certainly didn't feel cool. I was tired and sore and completely drained of energy.**

**"Did you guys feel that... whatever it was?" I asked.**

**They both nodded uneasily.**

**"Must've been the Furies overhead," Grover said.**

"I wish." Hades sighed, "But even they can't conjure up that atmosphere, mores the pity."

**But I wasn't so sure. Something had stopped Ares from killing me, and whatever could do that was a lot stronger than the Furies.**

**I looked at Annabeth, and an understanding passed between us. I knew now what was in that pit, what had spoken from the entrance of Tartarus.**

**I reclaimed my backpack from Grover and looked inside. The master bolt was still there. Such a small thing to almost cause World War III.**

Seeing his brother about to comment, Poseidon quickly read on.

**"We have to get back to New York," I said. "By tonight."**

**"That's impossible," Annabeth said, "unless we—"**

**"Fly," I agreed.**

"And what makes you thing I'm going to spare you if you enter my domain?"

"I have your master bolt."

"… Touché."

**She stared at me. "Fly, like, in an airplane, which you were warned never to do lest Zeus strike you out of the sky,**_**and**_**carrying a weapon that has more destructive power than a nuclear bomb?"**

**"Yeah," I said. "Pretty much exactly like that. Come on."**

"That's it." Poseidon sighed, glad that the chapter was finally over, "There are only two more left, who wants to read next?"

The room was silent until a small girl ran up from the hearth and took the book from Poseidon. "I will." Settling on the floor at her brother's feet, Hestia began to read.

"**I settle my tab."**

"Oh goodie," Zeus butted in, "I get my bolt back!"

* * *

**A/N: Nearly finished, and I would like to thank everyone who has stuck with me throughout. I'm going to continue on and do SoM but it may take a while as it is currently exam season for me. Also, if you want something else to do, check out Ingradera's story "A book, A note and some guests."**


	23. I Settle My Tab

"**I Settle My Tab,"**

"Wait, I thought you left vegas?" Hermes looked confused as the demigod just grinned.

"Not that kind of tab dude."

**It's funny how humans can wrap their mind around things and fit them into their version of reality. Chiron had told me that long ago. As usual, I didn't appreciate his wisdom until much later.**

Athena sighed, "That happens _way_ too often."

**According to the L.A. news, the explosion at the Santa Monica beach had been caused when a crazy kidnapper fired a shotgun at a police car. He accidentally hit a gas main that had ruptured during the earthquake.**

Hades grinned guiltily, "Happy to help."

"Thanks Uncle." Percy smiled at him as Nico had an evil look on his face.

"So… sometimes, destruction is a… good thing?"

Everyone in the room groaned and Hazel jokingly looked up to the raised dais where the eldest Olympians sat.

"Now you've gone and given him ideas again, thanks a lot dad!"

"You're welcome!"

**This crazy kidnapper (a.k.a. Ares)**

Ares growled. "I am not crazy!"

Clarisse (much to everyone's surprise) rolled her eyes. "Yes, and I'm a mermaid dad."

"Really, you don't look like you have a tail?"

"Not what I meant."

**was the same man who had abducted me and two other adolescents in New York and brought us across country on a ten-day odyssey of terror.**

**Poor little Percy Jackson wasn't an international criminal after all.**

**He'd caused a commotion on that Greyhound bus in New Jersey trying to get away from his captor (and afterward, witnesses would even swear they had seen the leather-clad man on the bus—"Why didn't I remember him before?"). The crazy man had caused the explosion in the St. Louis Arch. After all, no kid could've done that. A concerned waitress in Denver had seen the man threatening his abductees outside her diner, gotten a friend to take a photo, and notified the police. Finally, brave Percy Jackson (I was beginning to like this kid)**

Everyone in the room laughed at this, "You and your ego seaweed brain!" Annabeth chuckled against his neck before moving up to give him a peck on the lips.

**had stolen a gun from his captor in Los Angeles and battled him shotgun-to-rifle on the beach. Police had arrived just in time. But in the spectacular explosion, five police cars had been destroyed and the captor had fled. No fatalities had occurred. Percy Jackson and his two friends were safely in police custody.**

"And it was all a dream." Travis said in a strange voice, making everyone stare at him. "What? I want some fun in this chapter too!"

Thalia rolled her eyes at her nephew's antics, "Seriously, I really hope genetics on this side of our family doesn't count, I would hate to admit that I am related to you!"

**The reporters fed us this whole story. We just nodded and acted tearful and exhausted (which wasn't hard), and played victimized kids for the cameras.**

**"All I want," I said, choking back my tears, "is to see my loving stepfather again. Every time I saw him on TV, calling me a delinquent punk, I knew ... somehow ... we would be okay. And I know he'll want to reward each and every person in this beautiful city of Los Angeles with a free major appliance from his store.**

"Woop, REVENGE!" Apollo cheered, "I bet Nemesis loves you kid!"

Percy looked at the floor sadly, "Not after what happened with…"

Seeing where her boyfriend was going, Annabeth cut him off with a kiss. "Hey, no spoilers, and no getting depressed 'kay?"

"'Kay!"

**Here's the phone number." The police and reporters were so moved that they passed around the hat and raised money for three tickets on the next plane to New York.**

**I knew there was no choice but to fly. I hoped Zeus would cut me some slack, considering the circumstances. But it was still hard to force myself on board the flight.**

**Takeoff was a nightmare. Every spot of turbulence was scarier than a Greek monster.**

Zeus grinned wickedly at this line, stroking his master bolt lovingly. There was a sound of scraping in Olympus as his family began to pull away from him.

**I didn't unclench my hands from the armrests until we touched down safely at La Guardia. The local press was waiting for us outside security, but we managed to evade them thanks to Annabeth, who lured them away in her invisible Yankees cap, shouting, "They're over by the frozen yogurt! Come on!" then rejoined us at baggage claim.**

Athena smiled, "That's my girl."

"No mother, I'm a boy." Annabeth quipped, but the smile in her voice was obvious so the wisdom goddess took little offence from the comment.

**We split up at the taxi stand. I told Annabeth and Grover to get back to Half-Blood Hill and let Chiron know what had happened. They protested, and it was hard to let them go after all we'd been through, but I knew I had to do this last part of the quest by myself. If things went wrong, if the gods didn't believe me ... I wanted Annabeth and Grover to survive to tell Chiron the truth.**

"So that's why you did it." Annabeth glared playfully at him as he shrugged. Sobering up a little, she leaned forward to whisper into his ear, "Don't you ever let me hear of you trying to sacrifice yourself for me again!"

"Can we stop reading the books then?"

"No!"

"Then, in advance, I'm sorry?"

**I hopped in a taxi and headed into Manhattan.**

**Thirty minutes later, I walked into the lobby of the Empire State Building.**

**I must have looked like a homeless kid, with my tattered clothes and my scraped-up face. I hadn't slept in at least twenty-four hours.**

"That really isn't good for your skin." Piper whined before clamping a hand over her mouth, "What on earth did I just say?"

All of the demigods cracked up at this as Aphrodite squealed once again.

"I knew you were my daughter!"

**I went up to the guard at the front desk and said, "Six hundredth floor."**

**He was reading a huge book with a picture of a wizard on the front. I wasn't much into fantasy, but the book must've been good, because the guard took a while to look up. "No such floor, kiddo."**

"If that guy's mortal, Percy just made himself out to be a lunatic!" Jason laughed before glancing at his sister, "Please tell me the guy's mortal?"

Thalia sighed dramatically (who said these things weren't genetic?) "Sadly, he's not."

"Awwww."

**"I need an audience with Zeus."**

**He gave me a vacant smile. "Sorry?"**

**"You heard me."**

**I was about to decide this guy was just a regular mortal, and I'd better run for it before he called the straitjacket patrol, when he said, "No appointment, no audience, kiddo. Lord Zeus doesn't see anyone unannounced."**

"With one exception." Artemis grinned, although the demigod was a boy he didn't seem to be _too _awful.

**"Oh, I think he'll make an exception." I slipped off my backpack and unzipped the top.**

**guard looked inside at the metal cylinder, not getting what it was for a few seconds.**

**Then his face went pale. "That isn't..."**

**"Yes, it is," I promised. "You want me take it out and—"**

"DO IT!" Hermes cheered while his son's nodded enthusiastically, "Give that guy a heart attack!"

**"No! No!" He scrambled out of his seat, fumbled around his desk for a key card, then handed it to me. "Insert this in the security slot. Make sure nobody else is in the elevator with you."**

**I did as he told me. As soon as the elevator doors closed, I slipped the key into the slot. The card disappeared and a new button appeared on the console, a red one that said 600.**

**I pressed it and waited, and waited.**

**Muzak played. "Raindrops keep falling on my head..."**

"We really need to get better music." Apollo whined, "Maybe I could…"

"NO Apollo."

"But daaaaad…"

"I said no!"

Percy grinned, he would love to see how Apollo did manage to swing this one.

**Finally,**_**ding.**___**The doors slid open. I stepped out and almost had a heart attack.**

**I was standing on a narrow stone walkway in the middle of the air. Below me was Manhattan, from the height of an airplane. In front of me, white marble steps wound up the spine of a cloud, into the sky. My eyes followed the stairway to its end, where my brain just could not accept what I saw.**

"Wait, you mean you actually have a brain in there?" Nico mocked, having a fake heart attack, "I never would have guessed!"

Percy simply rolled his eyes but decided to be the better person and didn't comment.

**Look again, my brain said.**

**We're looking, my eyes insisted. It's really there.**

"And now he's talking to his eyes." Connor laughed, poking a pouting Leo in the ribs, "I think you just got usurped mate."

"Yeah, I know."

**From the top of the clouds rose the decapitated peak of a mountain, its summit covered with snow. Clinging to the mountainside were dozens of multileveled palaces—a city of mansions—all with white-columned porticos, gilded terraces, and bronze braziers glowing with a thousand fires. Roads wound crazily up to the peak, where the largest palace gleamed against the snow. Precariously perched gar dens bloomed with olive trees and rosebushes. I could make out an open-air market filled with colorful tents, a stone amphitheater built on one side of the mountain, a hippodrome and a coliseum on the other. It was an Ancient Greek city, except it wasn't in ruins. It was new, and clean, and colorful, the way Athens must've looked twenty-five hundred years ago.**

"It's even better now!" Percy declared boldly to the room, drawing curious stares from the gods and a deep blush from Annabeth.

"It isn't even finished yet!"

Hestia looked up from the book questioningly, "What did you mean by that dear?"

Percy just smiled warmly at her, "Sorry Lady Hestia, but that counts as a spoiler so, unless you all want to cover your ears and start singing for the next 3 hours while I explain, my lips are sealed!"

**This place can't be here, I told myself. The tip of a mountain hanging over New York City like a billion-ton asteroid? How could something like that be anchored above the Empire State Building, in plain sight of millions of people, and not get noticed?**

**But here it was. And here I was.**

**My trip through Olympus was a daze. I passed some giggling wood nymphs who threw olives at me from their garden. Hawkers in the market offered to sell me ambrosia-on-a-stick,**

Seeing her nephews' mouths watering, Hestia quickly read on before she could be interrupted again, she really wanted to return to her fire, not feeling very comfortable holding everyone's attention for such a long time.

**and a new shield, and a genuine glitter-weave replica of the Golden Fleece,**

Thalia started laughing at this, drawing a strange look from the gods, but when she offered no explanation, the goddess read on.

**as seen on Hephaestus-TV The nine muses were tuning their instruments for a concert in the park while a small crowd gathered—satyrs and naiads and a bunch of good-looking teenagers who might've been minor gods and goddesses. Nobody seemed worried about an impending civil war. In fact, everybody seemed in a festive mood.**

"Ah, the solstice celebrations." Dionysus sighed, his eyes taking on a dreamy quality.

**Several of them turned to watch me pass, and whispered to themselves.**

**I climbed the main road, toward the big palace at the peak. It was a reverse copy of the palace in the Underworld.**

**There, everything had been black and bronze. Here, everything glittered white and silver.**

**I realized Hades must've built his palace to resemble this one. He wasn't welcomed in Olympus except on the winter solstice, so he'd built his own Olympus underground.**

**Despite my bad experience with him, I felt a little sorry for the guy. To be banished from this place seemed really unfair. It would make anybody bitter.**

Hades shot a grateful glance at his nephew, "Finally, someone understands how I feel!"

**Steps led up to a central courtyard. Past that, the throne room.**

_**Room**___**really isn't the right word. The place made Grand Central Station look like a broom closet. Massive columns rose to a domed ceiling, which was gilded with moving constellations.**

All the demigods looked around the room appreciatively while the gods just looked smug. Yes, they were s_o _awesome!

**Twelve thrones, built for beings the size of Hades, were arranged in an inverted U, just like the cabins at Camp Half-Blood. An enormous fire crackled in the central hearth pit. The thrones were empty except for two at the end: the head throne on the right, and the one to its immediate left. I didn't have to be told who the two gods were that were sitting there, waiting for me to approach. I came toward them, my legs trembling.**

**The gods were in giant human form, as Hades had been, but I could barely look at them without feeling a tingle, as if my body were starting to burn. Zeus, the Lord of the Gods, wore a dark blue pinstriped suit. He sat on a simple throne of solid platinum. He had a well-trimmed beard, marbled gray and black like a storm cloud. His face was proud and handsome and grim, his eyes rainy gray.**

"I do look good don't I?" Zeus mused, stroking his beard as everyone else just shook their head in disappointment, he was really beginning to sound like a certain goddess of love…

**As I got nearer to him, the air crackled and smelled of ozone.**

**The god sitting next to him was his brother, without a doubt, but he was dressed very differently. He reminded me of a beachcomber from Key West. He wore leather sandals, khaki Bermuda shorts, and a Tommy Bahama shirt with coconuts and parrots all over it.**

Poseidon shrugged, "I don't like suits, they make me feel uncomfortable having something around my neck."

At this, Percy cracked up, drawing a glare from his father.

"And why is that so funny young man?"

"Um, well, I was just thinking that I feel the same way!"

The look in the sea gods eyes turned to one of pride and amusement as he looked at his son. Seeing that they were no longer going to interrupt her, Hestia read on.

**His skin was deeply tanned, his hands scarred like an old-time fisherman's. His hair was black, like mine. His face had that same brooding look that had always gotten me branded a rebel. But his eyes, sea green like mine, were surrounded by sun-crinkles that told me he smiled a lot, too.**

**His throne was a deep-sea fisherman's chair. It was the simple swiveling kind, with a black leather seat and a built-in holster for a fishing pole. Instead of a pole, the holster held a bronze trident, flickering with green light around the tips.**

Reyna shuddered, "I can imagine that that wasn't a comfortable situation to be in, though you do not seem to mind fighting with the gods one at a time."

Percy just smiled sheepishly at this comment, after all, he couldn't exactly argue.

**The gods weren't moving or speaking, but there was tension in the air, as if they'd just finished an argument.**

**I approached the fisherman's throne and knelt at his feet. "Father."**

"Aw, he recognized me." Poseidon grinned making his brothers snicker.

"Only cause you smell like fish!" Hades confirmed looking evil, unfortunately, this did nothing to his younger brother's mood.

"At least fish are alive."

**I dared not look up. My heart was racing. I could feel the energy emanating from the two gods. If I said the wrong thing, I had no doubt they could blast me into dust.**

**To my left, Zeus spoke. "Should you not address the master of this house first, boy?"**

**I kept my head down, and waited.**

"See, you can be polite if you want to!" Annabeth scolded him playfully.

**"Peace, brother," Poseidon finally said. His voice stirred my oldest memories: that warm glow I remembered as a baby, the sensation of this god's hand on my forehead, "The boy defers to his father. This is only right."**

**"You still claim him then?" Zeus asked, menacingly. "You claim this child whom you sired against our sacred oath?"**

**"I have admitted my wrongdoing," Poseidon said. "Now I would hear him speak."**

**Wrongdoing."**

All the demigods flinched at the comment. Yup, that _had _to hurt. Trying to avoid all the divine stares, Percy's face started to strengthen its relationship with Annabeth's hair.

**A lump welled up in my throat. Was that all I was? A wrongdoing? The result of a god's mistake?**

Now it was the turn of the god's to flinch.

"Well that was an awkward word choice brother!" Hera commented dryly.

**"I have spared him once already," Zeus grumbled. "Daring to fly through my domain ... pah! I should have blasted him out of the sky for his impudence."**

**"And risk destroying your own master bolt?" Poseidon asked calmly. "Let us hear him out, brother."**

**Zeus grumbled some more. "I shall listen," he decided. "Then I shall make up my mind whether or not to cast this boy down from Olympus."**

"He just rescued your precious bolt and you're threatening to throw him off _Olympus?" _Leo choked out, getting a sad look from his father.

"I think he is learning from his wife." At this all eyes turned to glare at Hera who began whistling innocently, looking off into space.

**"Perseus," Poseidon said. "Look at me."**

**I did, and I wasn't sure what I saw in his face. There was no clear sign of love or approval. Nothing to encourage me. It was like looking at the ocean: some days, you could tell what mood it was in. Most days, though, it was unreadable, mysterious.**

**I got the feeling Poseidon really didn't know what to think of me. He didn't know whether he was happy to have me as a son or not. In a strange way, I was glad that Poseidon was so distant. If he'd tried to apologize, or told me he loved me, or even smiled, it would've felt fake. Like a human dad, making some lame excuse for not being around. I could live with that. After all, I wasn't sure about him yet, either.**

Poseidon flinched, "Sorry."

"Water under the bridge dad." The sea prince grinned at his word choice.

**"Address Lord Zeus, boy," Poseidon told me. "Tell him your story."**

**So I told Zeus everything, just as it had happened. I took out the metal cylinder, which began sparking in the Sky God's presence, and laid it at his feet.**

**There was a long silence, broken only by the crackle of the hearth fire.**

**Zeus opened his palm. The lightning bolt flew into it.**

"Always have to be dramatic." Hades rolled his eyes, glaring amusedly at his youngest sibling who just pouted.

"What, it's fun to do that!"

**As he closed his fist, the metallic points flared with electricity, until he was holding what looked more like the classic thunderbolt, a twenty-foot javelin of arcing, hissing energy that made the hairs on my scalp rise.**

**"I sense the boy tells the truth," Zeus muttered. "But that Ares would do such a thing ... it is most unlike him."**

**"He is proud and impulsive," Poseidon said. "It runs in the family."**

The entire room cracked up at this as Ares glared at the floor.

**"Lord?" I asked.**

**They both said, "Yes?"**

"He was talking to me!" Poseidon shot a look at Zeus who glowered back,

"No, he was talking to me!" Huffing, the two gods glared at each other before turning to say in unison,

"PERCY?"

The boy looked like a rabbit in the headlights as he flashed a look to his aunt, "I will do whatever you want me to do for a week, but please read on now."

**"Ares didn't act alone. Someone else—something else— came up with the idea."**

**I described my dreams, and the feeling I'd had on the beach, that momentary breath of evil that had seemed to stop the world, and made Ares back off from killing me."**

**"In the dreams," I said, "the voice told me to bring the bolt to the Underworld. Ares hinted that he'd been having dreams, too. I think he was being used, just as I was, to start a war."**

**"You are accusing Hades, after all?" Zeus asked.**

Nico, Hazel and their father turned to glare at Percy. "Are you?"

Percy turned to face the girl who had spoken in shock, "Of course not!"

**"No," I said. "I mean, Lord Zeus, I've been in the presence of Hades. This feeling on the beach was different. It was the same thing I felt when I got close to that pit. That was the entrance to Tartarus, wasn't it? Something powerful and evil is stirring down there ... something even older than the gods."**

**Poseidon and Zeus looked at each other. They had a quick, intense discussion in Ancient Greek. I only caught one word.**_**Father.**_

"Kronos." Thalia said, wincing slightly as she spoke. All of the Olympians shifted uneasily at this.

**Poseidon made some kind of suggestion, but Zeus cut him off. Poseidon tried to argue. Zeus held up his hand angrily. "We will speak of this no more," Zeus said.**

**personally to purify this thunderbolt in the waters of Lemnos, to remove the human taint from its metal."**

**He rose and looked at me. His expression softened just a fraction of a degree. "You have done me a service, boy. Few heroes could have accomplished as much."**

**"I had help, sir," I said. "Grover Underwood and Annabeth Chase—"**

Annabeth gasped and clung to his neck desperately, "Wow, you actually remembered!"

"You really thought that I'd forget?" Percy looked at her skeptically, but stopped when she pulled him in for such a deep kiss that Aphrodite squealed again and Artemis went slightly green

**"To show you my thanks, I shall spare your life. I do not trust you, Perseus Jackson. I do not like what your arrival means for the future of Olympus. But for the sake of peace in the family, I shall let you live."**

**"Um... thank you, sir."**

**"Do not presume to fly again. Do not let me find you here when I return. Otherwise you shall taste this bolt. And it shall be your last sensation."**

"Pleasant." Piper muttered.

"And thankful." Rachel added as all the demigods turned to glare at Zeus.

**Thunder shook the palace. With a blinding flash of lightning, Zeus was gone.**

**I was alone in the throne room with my father. "Your uncle," Poseidon sighed, "has always had a flair for dramatic exits. I think he would've done well as the god of theater."**

Everyone laughed as Zeus hit his brother for this.

"What? It's true… and Ow!"

Before her brothers could begin fighting on the floor again, the goddess of the hearth read on.

**An uncomfortable silence.**

**"Sir," I said, "what was in that pit?"**

**Poseidon regarded me. "Have you not guessed?"**

**"Kronos," I said. "The king of the Titans."**

All of the gods shuddered again while the older demigods just looked weary.

**Even in the throne room of Olympus, far away from Tartarus, the name**_**Kronos**_**darkened the room, made the hearth fire seem not quite so warm on my back.**

**Poseidon gripped his trident. "In the First War, Percy, Zeus cut our father Kronos into a thousand pieces, just as Kronos had done to his own father, Ouranos. Zeus cast Kronos's remains into the darkest pit of Tartarus. The Titan army was scattered, their mountain fortress on Etna destroyed, their monstrous allies driven to the farthest corners of the earth. And yet Titans cannot die, any more than we gods can. Whatever is left of Kronos is still alive in some hideous way, still conscious in his eternal pain, still hungering for power."**

Nico flinched, "even I find that disturbing."

**"He's healing," I said. "He's coming back."**

**Poseidon shook his head. "From time to time, over the eons, Kronos has stirred. He enters men's nightmares and breathes evil thoughts. He wakens restless monsters from the depths. But to suggest he could rise from the pit is another thing."**

"And _that _is the attitude that almost got us all killed!" Thalia spat, glaring at her father in disgust while the Olympians looked at her shocked. Athena was the first to break the silence.

"So he _did _rise then?" No one answered and Hestia read on.

**"That's what he intends, Father. That's what he said."**

**Poseidon was silent for a long time.**

**"Lord Zeus has closed discussion on this matter. He will not allow talk of Kronos. You have completed your quest, child. That is all you need to do."**

**"But—" I stopped myself. Arguing would do no good. It would very possibly anger the only god who I had on my side.**

"Are you really that hated?" Poseidon looked at his son sadly, jumping a little at the force of the reply that came from all the Greek demigods.

"YES!"

**"As ... as you wish, Father."**

**A faint smile played on his lips. "Obedience does not come naturally to you, does it?"**

**"No ... sir."**

**"I must take some blame for that, I suppose. The sea does not like to be restrained." He rose to his full height and took up his trident. Then he shimmered and became the size of a regular man, standing directly in front of me. "You must go, child. But first, know that your mother has returned."**

Poseidon sighed in relief. At least Sally was okay!

**I stared at him, completely stunned. "My mother?"**

**"You will find her at home. Hades sent her when you recovered his helm. Even the Lord of Death pays his debts."**

Hades smirked again, "Yes, and I know how to be thankful, unlike _some people!"_ The last bit was aimed at Zeus who pretended not to hear him.

**My heart was pounding. I couldn't believe it. "Do you ... would you ..."**

**I wanted to ask if Poseidon would come with me to see her, but then I realized that was ridiculous. I imagined loading the God of the Sea into a taxi and taking him to the Upper East Side. If he'd wanted to see my mom all these years, he would have. And there was Smelly Gabe to think about.**

"We really need to try that some time, see how many cabbies will believe us when we tell them who we are!" Apollo cheered. When his twin went to comment on this, the sun god was expecting a rebuff, but instead, the young goddess just grinned.

"I'm in!"

The room went silent as everyone in the room stared at Artemis.

"My Lady…" Thalia began before she was cut off by Apollo running over and pulling his twin into a bear hug.

"YES I KNEW WE WERE RELATED!"

"Yes, that's very nice brother. But can you put me down now?"

Once they had regained their seats, Hestia read on.

**Poseidon's eyes took on a little sadness. "When you return home, Percy, you must make an important choice. You will find a package waiting in your room."**

**"A package?"**

**"You will understand when you see it. No one can choose your path, Percy. You must decide."**

Annabeth giggled at this, but the gods had already learnt not to ask for explanations by now.

**I nodded, though I didn't know what he meant.**

**"Your mother is a queen among women," Poseidon said wistfully. "I had not met such a mortal woman in a thousand years. Still ... I am sorry you were born, child. I have brought you a hero's fate, and a hero's fate is never happy. It is never anything but tragic."**

"And yet another tactical error, you know fish face, I am really beginning to feel sorry for your son!" Athena commented.

**I tried not to feel hurt. Here was my own dad, telling me he was sorry I'd been born.**

**"I don't mind, Father."**

**"Not yet, perhaps," he said. "Not yet. But it was an unforgivable mistake on my part."**

**"I'll leave you then." I bowed awkwardly. "I—I won't bother you again."**

**I was five steps away when he called, "Perseus."**

Annabeth grinned at the god, "You're lucky he doesn't shout at you, he hates his full name."

"HEY! I would never…"

"… YES YOU WOULD!"

"Okay, maybe I would." Percy conceded, pouting slightly.

**I turned.**

**There was a different light in his eyes, a fiery kind of pride. "You did well, Perseus. Do not misunderstand me. Whatever else you do, know that you are mine. You are a true son of the Sea God."**

"Finally you say something fatherly!" Demeter sighed in exasperation.

**As I walked back through the city of the gods, conversations stopped. The muses paused their concert.**

**People and satyrs and naiads all turned toward me, their faces filled with respect and gratitude, and as I passed, they knelt, as if I were some kind of hero.**

"Um, maybe because you are?" Thalia put on a mock dunce accent making everyone laugh.

"Whatever you say pinecone face!"

**Fifteen minutes later, still in a trance, I was back on the streets of Manhattan.**

**I caught a taxi to my mom's apartment, rang the door bell, and there she was—my beautiful mother, smelling of peppermint and licorice, the weariness and worry evaporating from her face as soon as she saw me.**

**"Percy! Oh, thank goodness. Oh, my baby."**

Percy smiled happily as The Stolls and Clarisse snickered into their hands, he was s_o _going to get it later!

**She crushed the air right out of me. We stood in the hallway as she cried and ran her hands through my hair.**

**I'll admit it—my eyes were a little misty, too.**

**I was shaking, I was so relieved to see her.**

**She told me she'd just appeared at the apartment that morning, scaring Gabe half out of his wits.**

Thalia laughed darkly. "He definitely deserved it."

**She didn't remember anything since the Minotaur, and couldn't believe it when Gabe told her I was a wanted criminal, traveling across the country, blowing up national monuments. She'd been going out of her mind with worry all day because she hadn't heard the news. Gabe had forced her to go into work, saying she had a month's salary to make up and she'd better get started.**

The mood darkened and Percy shot a look over to his youngest cousin,

"Please…"

Nico scowled and nodded, "On it, well, as soon as I think up a bat enough punishment for him!"

**I swallowed back my anger and told her my own story. I tried to make it sound less scary than it had been, but that wasn't easy. I was just getting to the fight with Ares when Gabe's voice interrupted from the living room. "Hey, Sally! That meat loaf done yet or what?"**

**She closed her eyes. "He isn't going to be happy to see you, Percy. The store got half a million phone calls today from Los Angeles ... something about free appliances."**

Everyone laughed at this, but the mirth did not last long, the atmosphere in the room was too heavy for that.

**"Oh, yeah. About that..."**

**She managed a weak smile. "Just don't make him angrier, all right? Come on."**

**In the month I'd been gone, the apartment had turned into Gabeland. Garbage was ankle deep on the carpet. The sofa had been reupholstered in beer cans. Dirty socks and underwear hung off the lampshades.**

Aphrodite, Demeter, Artemis and Athena looked as though they were going to be sick.

**Gabe and three of his big goony friends were playing poker at the table.**

**When Gabe saw me, his cigar dropped out of his mouth. His face got redder than lava. "You got nerve coming here, you little punk. I thought the police—"**

**"He's not a fugitive after all," my mom interjected. "Isn't that wonderful, Gabe?"**

**Gabe looked back and forth between us. He didn't seem to think my homecoming was so wonderful.**

**"Bad enough I had to give back your life insurance money, Sally," he growled.**

Artemis sprung to her feet. "If I _ever _catch that filthy little _swine, _I am going to punch him so hard that he will _beg _to be sent to the field of Punishments!"

Apollo stood up, "Okay, we get it, now, could you si… nice, friendly hunting knife, please don't kill me!"

Giggling to herself, Hestia read on again, drowning out Apollo's whimpers as his sister pressed a blade against his throat.

**"Get me the phone. I'll call the cops."**

**"Gabe, no!"**

**He raised his eyebrows. "Did you just say**_**'no'?**___**You think I'm gonna put up with this punk again? I can still press charges against him for ruining my Camaro."**

**"But—"**

**He raised his hand, and my mother flinched.**

**For the first time, I realized something. Gabe had hit my mother.**

Athena, who had previously been restraining her little sister, gave up, snarling quietly. "When you find him, I will assist with the torture!"

**I didn't know when, or how much. But I was sure he'd done it. Maybe**_**it**___**had been going on for years, when I wasn't around.**

**A balloon of anger started expanding in my chest. I came toward Gabe, instinctively taking my pen out of my pocket.**

"Won't work." Thalia said sadly. "By the loosest definition, Gabe is still human!"

**He just laughed. "What, punk? You gonna write on me? You touch me, and you are going to jail forever, you understand?"**

**"Hey, Gabe," his friend Eddie interrupted. "He's just a kid."**

**Gabe looked at him resentfully and mimicked in a falsetto voice:**_**"Just a kid."**_

**His other friends laughed like idiots.**

**"I'll be nice to you, punk." Gabe showed me his tobacco-stained teeth. "I'll give you five minutes to get your stuff and clear out. After that, I call the police."**

**"Gabe!" my mother pleaded.**

**"He ran away," Gabe told her. "Let him stay gone."**

Annabeth's face was quickly darkening to a similar shade as her mother's even though Percy was trying to hug her reassuringly.

**I was itching to uncap Riptide, but even if I did, the blade wouldn't hurt humans. And Gabe, by the loosest definition, was human.**

**My mother took my arm. "Please, Percy. Come on. We'll go to your room."**

**I let her pull me away, my hands still trembling with rage.**

**My room had been completely filled with Gabe's junk. I here were stacks of used car batteries, a rotting bouquet of sympathy flowers with a card from somebody who'd seen his Barbara Walters interview.**

**"Gabe is just upset, honey," my mother told me. "I'll talk to him later. I'm sure it will work out."**

**"Mom, it'll never work out. Not as long as Gabe's here."**

**She wrung her hands nervously. "I can ... I'll take you to work with me for the rest of the summer. In the fall, maybe there's another boarding school—"**

**"Mom."**

**She lowered her eyes. "I'm trying, Percy. I just... I need some time."**

"Sally…" Poseidon sighed desperately.

**A package appeared on my bed. At least, I could've sworn it hadn't been there a moment before.**

**It was a battered cardboard box about the right size to fit a basketball. The address on the mailing slip was in my own handwriting:**

_**The Gods**_

_**MountOlympus**_

_**600th Floor,**_

_**EmpireState Building**_

_**New York, NY**_

_**With best wishes,**_

_**PERCY JACKSON**_

There was an audible gasp in the room then everyone appeared to turn evil.

"Do it!" Thalia, Nico, The Stolls, Clarisse and most of the gods chanted under their breath.

**Over the top in black marker, in a man's clear, bold print, was the address of our apartment, and the words: RETURN TO SENDER.**

**Suddenly I understood what Poseidon had told me on Olympus.**

**A package. A decision.**

_**Whatever else you do, know that you are mine. You are a true son of the Sea God.**_

**I looked at my mother. "Mom, do you want Gabe gone?"**

**"Percy, it isn't that simple. I—"**

"Yes, it is that simple!" Nico laughed darkly and Percy began to feel more than a little scared of he other boy.

**"Mom, just tell me. That jerk has been hitting you. Do you want him gone or not?"**

**She hesitated, then nodded almost imperceptibly. "Yes, Percy. I do. And I'm trying to get up my courage to tell him. But you can't do this for me. You can't solve my problems."**

**I looked at the box.**

**I**_**could**___**solve her problem. I wanted to slice that package open, plop it on the poker table, and take out what was inside. I could start my very own statue garden, right there in the living room.**

"YES!" Most of the people screeched at him, making Percy smile again.

**That's what a Greek hero would do in the stories, I thought. That's what Gabe deserves.**

**But a hero's story always ended in tragedy. Poseidon had told me that.**

**I remembered the Underworld. I thought about Gabe's spirit drifting forever in the Fields of Asphodel, or condemned to some hideous torture behind the barbed wire of the Fields of Punishment—an eternal poker game, sitting up to his waist in boiling oil listening to opera music. Did I have the right to send someone there? Even Gabe?**

"Yes." Clarisse said smiling maliciously. "Do it!"

**A month ago, I wouldn't have hesitated. Now ...**

**"I can do it," I told my mom. "One look inside this box, and he'll never bother you again."**

**She glanced at the package, and seemed to understand immediately. "No, Percy," she said, stepping away. "You can't."**

**"Poseidon called you a queen," I told her. "He said he hadn't met a woman like you in a thousand years."**

**Her cheeks flushed. "Percy—"**

Poseidon laughed, "Well, I was only being truthful!"

**"You deserve better than this, Mom. You should go to college, get your degree. You can write your novel, meet a nice guy maybe, live in a nice house. You don't need to protect me anymore by staying with Gabe. Let me get rid of him."**

**She wiped a tear off her cheek. "You sound so much like your father," she said. "He offered to stop the tide for me once. He offered to build me a palace at the bottom of the sea.**

"I still would." Poseidon sighed, shocking the others in the room by his devotion.

**He thought he could solve all my problems with a wave of his hand."**

**"What's wrong with that?"**

**Her multicolored eyes seemed to search inside me. "I think you know, Percy. I think you're enough like me to understand. If my life is going to mean anything, I have to live it myself. I can't let a god take care of me ... or my son. I have to ... find the courage on my own. Your quest has reminded me of that."**

**We listened to the sound of poker chips and swearing, ESPN from the living room television.**

**"I'll leave the box," I said. "If he threatens you …"**

"That's a good compromise I guess." Thalia said, disappointment colouring her voice.

**She looked pale, but she nodded. "Where will you go, Percy?"**

**"Half-Blood Hill."**

**"For the summer ... or forever?"**

**"I guess that depends."**

**We locked eyes, and I sensed that we had an agreement. We would see how things stood at the end of the summer.**

"A good start." Annabeth sighed, leaning back into her boyfriend who hugged her tighter.

**She kissed my forehead. "You'll be a hero, Percy. You'll be the greatest of all."**

**I took one last look around my bedroom. I had a feeling I'd never see it again. Then I walked with my mother to the front door.**

**"Leaving so soon, punk?" Gabe called after me. "Good riddance."**

A lot of fist tightened, some people even growled in a whisper.

**I had one last twinge of doubt. How could I turn down the perfect chance to take revenge on him? I was leaving here without saving my mother.**

**"Hey, Sally," he yelled. "What about that meat loaf, huh?"**

**A steely look of anger flared in my mother's eyes, and I thought, just maybe, I was leaving her in good hands after all. Her own.**

Everyone smiled gleefully at this. The revenge was only sweet to the person who desired it most!

**"The meat loaf is coming right up, dear," she told Gabe. "Meat loaf surprise."**

**She looked at me, and winked.**

**The last thing I saw as the door swung closed was my mother staring at Gabe, as if she were contemplating how he would look as a garden statue.**

"And that's the end of the chapter, who's going next?" Hestia asked sweetly, even though she had a rather evil look in her eyes, surprising many with her dark side. Hesitantly, Hermes raised his hand.

"I will Aunty H, if you don't mind?"

Laughing like the little girl she appeared to be, Hestia danced over to her nephew, passing on the book on her way back to the fire.

Finding his place, the god of thieves began to read, "**The Prophecy Comes True,"**


	24. The Prophecy Comes True

"**The Prophecy Comes True,"**

Hermes read before cheering. "Whoop, now we find out what it meant."

"But I thought it had already finished?" Demeter questioned the room while Apollo stared moodily at the floor.

"No, there's this one line that bothers me, _you will be betrayed by one who calls you a friend!" _

Athena shot her brother a sad look, not wanting to see his reaction if what she thought was going to happen actually did. This was probably the one time that the wisdom goddess actually _wanted _to be wrong.

**We were the first heroes to return alive to Half-Blood Hill since Luke, so of course everybody treated us as if we'd won some reality-TV contest.**

**According to camp tradition, we wore laurel wreaths to a big feast prepared in our honor, then led a procession down to the bonfire, where we got to burn the burial shrouds our cabins had made for us in our absence.**

"Who made yours then Percy?" Poseidon shot a look across the room at his son who burst out laughing.

"My dear Ares cousins!"

"Well then Punk, this better be good!" The war god scowled.

**Annabeth's shroud was so beautiful—gray silk with embroidered owls—I told her it seemed a shame not to bury her in it.**

"And _what _exactly is that supposed to mean?" Athena scowled at the demigod who quickly hid behind his girlfriend.

"Just that it was really pretty lady Athena, I assure you!"

"That better be true Jackson!"

"Yes ma'am!" All of the demigods laughed at the fear in their friend's voice as he addressed the goddess.

**She punched me and told me to shut up.**

**Being the son of Poseidon, I didn't have any cabin mates, so the Ares cabin had volunteered to make my shroud. They'd taken an old bed sheet and painted smiley faces with X'ed-out eyes around the border, and the word LOSER painted really big in the middle.**

Poseidon started growling, but Ares cracked up, "That's my girl, Clarisse! That's my girl!"

**It was fun to burn.**

"I can imagine!" Poseidon laughed, his mood changing instantly.

**As Apollo's cabin led the sing-along and passed out s'mores, I was surrounded by my old Hermes cabin mates, Annabeth's friends from Athena,**

"Siblings." Annabeth corrected. While her boyfriend blushed.

"Yes, that's what I meant."

"Sure it is seaweed brain, sure it is."

**and Grover's satyr buddies, who were admiring the brand-new searcher's license he'd received from the Council of Cloven Elders. The council had called Grover's performance on the quest "Brave to the point of indigestion. Horns-and-whiskers above anything we have seen in the past."**

All of the assembled audience cracked up at this and, to everyone's surprise, Dionysus spoke up.

"You have to love those crazy goat people!"

"I thought you hated it there?" Artemis asked shrewdly.

"Well, some things are fun about that rotten camp, for example…"

"Save it, I don't want to hear what your explanation is." A bright red moon goddess replied.

**The only ones not in a party mood were Clarisse and her cabin mates, whose poisonous looks told me they'd never forgive me for disgracing their dad.**

"Still not forgiven you for that Prissy."

"Thanks Clarisse, love you too."

**That was okay with me.**

**Even Dionysus's welcome-home speech wasn't enough to dampen my spirits. "Yes, yes, so the little brat didn't get himself killed and now he'll have an even bigger head. Well, huzzah for that.**

"Great speech bro!" Apollo managed to get out through his laughter, "One of your best!"

"Well, I do aim to please."

**In other announcements, there will be**_**no**___**canoe races this Saturday..."**

**I moved back into cabin three, but it didn't feel so lonely anymore. I had my friends to train with during the day. At night, I lay awake and listened to the sea, knowing my father was out there. Maybe he wasn't quite sure about me yet, maybe he hadn't even wanted me born, but he was watching. And so far, he was proud of what I'd done.**

**As for my mother, she had a chance at a new life. Her letter arrived a week after I got back to camp. She told me Gabe had left mysteriously—disappeared off the face of the planet, in fact.**

A loud cheer rose from the demigods and all of the gods who actually cared about the treatment of a mere, mortal woman (basically, everyone except Ares and Dionysus then!)

**She'd reported him missing to the police, but she had a funny feeling they would never find him.**

**On a completely unrelated subject, she'd sold her first life-size concrete sculpture, entitled**_**The Poker Player,**___**to a collector, through an art gallery in Soho.**

The whole room filled with dark laughter at this as Persephone fake pouted.

"Darn, I wanted him for my garden!"

**She'd gotten so much money for it, she'd put a deposit down on a new apartment and made a payment on her first semester's tuition at NYU. The Soho gallery was clamoring for more of her work, which they called "a huge step forward in super-ugly neorealism."**

Again there was laughter. "He definitely was super-ugly." Rachel said.

_**But don't worry,**___**my mom wrote.**_**I'm done with sculpture. I've disposed of that box of tools you left me. It's time for me to turn to writing.**_

**At the bottom, she wrote a P.S.:**_**Percy, I've found a good private school here in the city. I've put a deposit down to hold you a spot, in case you want to enroll for seventh grade. You could live at home. But if you want to go year-round at Half-Blood Hill, I'll understand.**_

Demeter sighed happily, "Such a lovely woman!"

**I folded the note carefully and set it on my bedside table. Every night before I went to sleep, I read it again, and I tried to decide how to answer her.**

**On the Fourth of July, the whole camp gathered at the beach for a fireworks display by cabin nine. Being Hephaestus's kids, they weren't going to settle for a few lame red-white-and-blue explosions. They'd anchored a barge offshore and loaded it with rockets the size of Patriot missiles. According to Annabeth, who'd seen the show before, the blasts would be sequenced so tightly they'd look like frames of animation across the sky. The finale was supposed to be a couple of hundred-foot-tall Spartan warriors who would crackle to life above the ocean, fight a battle, then explode into a million colors.**

Hephaestus smirked with pride at this while Leo's eyes widened in wonder.

"Cool!"

**As Annabeth and I were spreading a picnic blanket,**

"Yay, the second date of Percabeth!" Aphrodite squealed out of the blue, making everyone jump then wince as their eardrums were attacked by the high pitched sound.

**Grover showed up to tell us good-bye. He was dressed in his usual jeans and T-shirt and sneakers, but in the last few weeks he'd started to look older, almost high-school age. His goatee had gotten thicker. He'd put on weight. His horns had grown at least an inch, so he now had to wear his rasta cap all the time to pass as human.**

**"I'm off," he said. "I just came to say ... well, you know."**

**I tried to feel happy for him. After all, it wasn't every day a satyr got permission to go look for the great god Pan. But it was hard saying good-bye. I'd only known Grover a year, yet he was my oldest friend.**

"That's just sad." Jason told his cousin mockingly. Percy replied in mock solemnity.

"I know right, my life is messed up mate, for, you see, I'm what people call a _problem child _so I don't stay anywhere too long."

The Stolls looked at each other and grinned before speaking in unison, "Bet we got kicked out of more schools than you!"

**Annabeth gave him a hug. She told him to keep his fake feet on.**

**I asked him where he was going to search first.**

**"Kind of a secret," he said, looking embarrassed. "I wish you could come with me, guys, but humans and Pan …"**

**"We understand," Annabeth said. "You got enough tin cans for the trip?"**

**"Yeah."**

**"And you remembered your reed pipes?"**

**"Jeez, Annabeth," he grumbled. "You're like an old mama goat."**

Annabeth pretended to pout at this.

**But he didn't really sound annoyed.**

"I bet he likes people taking care of him." Katie added with a grin.

**He gripped his walking stick and slung a backpack over his shoulder. He looked like any hitchhiker you might see on an American highway—nothing like the little runty boy I used to defend from bullies at Yancy Academy.**

"Well, I guess that's a _small _improvement." Aphrodite sighed unhappily.

**"Well," he said, "wish me luck."**

**He gave Annabeth another hug. He clapped me on the shoulder, then headed back through the dunes.**

**Fireworks exploded to life overhead: Hercules killing the Nemean lion, Artemis chasing the boar, George Washington (who, by the way, was a son of Athena)**

**crossing the Delaware.**

**"Hey, Grover," I called.**

**He turned at the edge of the woods.**

**"Wherever you're going—I hope they make good enchiladas."**

Travis laughed. "Yeah cause that's gonna be all that Grover is going to be worried about on his quest to find the lost god Pan. Never mind all of the monsters or curses and traps, so long as there are good enchiladas everything is going to be fine!"

**Grover grinned, and then he was gone, the trees closing around him.**

**"We'll see him again," Annabeth said.**

**I tried to believe it. The fact that no searcher had ever come back in two thousand years ... well, I decided not to think about that. Grover would be the first. He had to be.**

The older demigods all smiled at each other sadly and Hermes' head shot up.

"Did he manage it?"

Silence filled the room.

**July passed.**

**I spent my days devising new strategies for capture-the-flag and making alliances with the other cabins to keep the banner out of Ares's hands.**

Clarisse growled as all the others laughed.

**I got to the top of the climbing wall for the first time without getting scorched by lava.**

**From time to time, I'd walk past the Big House, glance up at the attic windows, and think about the Oracle. I tried to convince myself that its prophecy had come to completion.**

Annabeth and Thalia sighed and Percy pulled his girlfriend closer for a comforting hug.

_**You shall go west, and face the god who has turned.**_

**Been there, done that—even though the traitor god had turned out to be Ares rather than Hades.**

Nico grinned and Hades nodded his head. "See, _not _my fault!"

"Yes brother, we know!" Zeus sighed, "You already told us that."

"Well, I wouldn't want you to forget in the future now, would I?"

_**You shall find what was stolen, and see it safe returned.**_

**Check. One master bolt delivered. One helm of darkness back on Hades's oily head.**

Hades frowned as everyone else laughed at his expense.

_**You shall be betrayed by one who calls you a friend.**_

The room went dead silent at this, they all knew that this hadn't been sorted yet.

**This line still bothered me. Ares had pretended to be my friend, then betrayed me. That must be what the Oracle meant...**

"Unfortunately, it wasn't that easy Perce." Rachel sighed.

_**And you shall fail to save what matters most, in the end.**_

**I**_**had**___**failed to save my mom, but only because I'd let her save herself, and I knew that was the right ****thing.**

Poseidon smiled sadly at this, "Oh how I wished she had let me help her."

Percy shot him a look. "You know she would never have accepted it!"

"I know, but it still can't stop me from wishing!"

**So why was I still uneasy?**

**The last night of the summer session came all too quickly.**

**The campers had one last meal together. We burned part of our dinner for the gods. At the bonfire, the senior counselors awarded the end-of-summer beads.**

**I got my own leather necklace, and when I saw the bead for my first summer, I was glad the firelight covered my blushing. The design was pitch black, with a sea-green trident shimmering in the center.**

All the older Greek Demigods started playing with said bead unconsciously, making the gods laugh and Poseidon literally glow with pride.

**"The choice was unanimous," Luke announced.****"This bead commemorates the first Son of the Sea God at this camp, and the quest he undertook into the darkest part of the Underworld to stop a war!"**

"More's the pity for you." Nico hissed under his breath, making all of the ones who heard flinch.

**The entire camp got to their feet and cheered. Even Ares's cabin felt obliged to stand. Athena's cabin steered Annabeth to the front so she could share in the applause.**

Annabeth and Percy shared a long look at this, making Jason pretend to gag into his hand before they looked away, blushing slightly.

**I'm not sure I'd ever felt as happy or sad as I did at that moment. I'd finally found a family, people who cared about me and thought I'd done something right. And in the morning, most of them would be leaving for the year.**

**The next morning, I found a form letter on my bedside table.**

**I knew Dionysus must've filled it out, because he stubbornly insisted on getting my name wrong:**

"That really is annoying!" Clarisse grumbled as all of the Greeks nodded their agreement.

_**Dear_**_**Peter Johnson_**_**_**____**,**_

_**If you intend to stay at Camp Half-Blood year-round, you must inform the Big House by noon today. If you do not announce your intentions, we will assume you have vacated your cabin or died a horrible death. Cleaning harpies will begin work at sundown. They will be authorized to eat any unregistered campers. All personal articles left behind will be incinerated in the lava pit.**_

_**Have a nice day!**_

_**Mr. D (Dionysus)**_

_**Camp Director, Olympian Council #12**_

"Well, that was pleasant!" Hermes laughed while Dionysus smirked in his throne, leaning back a bit.

**That's another thing about ADHD. Deadlines just aren't real to me until I'm staring one in the face.**

**Summer was over, and I still hadn't answered my mother, or the camp, about whether I'd be staying. Now I had only a few hours to decide.**

**The decision should have been easy. I mean, nine months of hero training or nine months of sitting in a classroom—duh.**

"School!" Annabeth, her mother and Piper all said at the same time as everyone else in the room shouted "Hero training."

"Honestly seaweed brain, how do I cope with you?" The daughter of Athena shook her head in mock disgust.

"Because you loooooove me?"

"… Touché!"

**But there was my mom to consider. For the first time, I had the chance to live with her for a whole year, without Gabe. I had a chance be at home and knock around the city in my free time. I remembered what Annabeth had said so long ago on our quest:**_**The real world is where the monsters are. That's where you learn whether you're any good or not.**_

**I thought about the fate of Thalia, daughter of Zeus. I wondered how many monsters would attack me if I left Half-Blood Hill. If I stayed in one place for a whole school year, without Chiron or my friends around to help me, would my mother and I even survive until the next summer?**

"Yes." said Nico and all the other demigods cheered while Percy went bright red…again.

**That was assuming the spelling tests and five-paragraph essays didn't kill me. I decided I'd go down to the arena and do some sword practice. Maybe that would clear my head.**

**The campgrounds were mostly deserted, shimmering in the August heat. All the campers were in their cabins packing up, or running around with brooms and mops, getting ready for final inspection. Argus was helping some of the Aphrodite kids haul their Gucci suitcases and makeup kits over the hill, where the camp's shuttle bus would be waiting to take them to the airport.**

Piper frowned. "Why did you have to mention that? Not all of us are _that _bad!"

In response, the child of the sea just grinned, "Really Pipes? I'm pretty sure you're an exception not the rule when it comes to your family!"

**Don't think about leaving yet, I told myself. Just train.**

**I got to the sword-fighters arena and found that Luke had had the same idea. His gym bag was plopped at the edge of the stage. He was working solo, whaling on battle dummies with a sword I'd never seen before. It must've been a regular steel blade, because he was slashing the dummies' heads right off, stabbing through their straw-stuffed guts. His orange counselor's shirt was dripping with sweat. His expression was so intense, his life might've really been in danger.**

"Nope, just irritated that his plan didn't work properly!" Thalia muttered, glaring at the floor. Artemis shot a worried look at her new lieutenant, but said nothing.

**I watched, fascinated, as he disemboweled the whole row of dummies, hacking off limbs and basically reducing them to a pile of straw and armor.**

**They were only dummies, but I still couldn't help being awed by Luke's skill. The guy was an incredible fighter. It made me wonder, again, how he possibly could've failed at his quest.**

Hermes stopped reading and frowned thoughtfully, "Yeah, me too."

**Finally, he saw me, and stopped mid-swing. "Percy."**

**"Um, sorry," I said, embarrassed. "I just—"**

**"It's okay," he said, lowering his sword. "Just doing some last-minute practice."**

**"Those dummies won't be bothering anybody any more."**

All of the gods laughed lightly, but the demigods just sat in their chairs looking gloomy, something not out of place for the son of Hades, but for people like Will and Leo… let's just say it was a new experience.

**Luke shrugged. "We build new ones every summer."**

**Now that his sword wasn't swirling around, I could see something odd about it. The blade was two different types of metal—one edge bronze, the other steel.**

Athena's mouth fell open and she started shacking slightly. "Oh no, oh no, oh no!"

Quick as a flash, Annabeth was on her feet and at her mother's side stroking the goddess' arm soothingly. Zeus turned his gaze from his daughter to his nephew.

"What was all that about?"

Percy just shrugged. "No idea."

He sounded innocent enough, but Apollo hissed slightly. That was a lie! Still, Hermes decided that now would be a good time to read on.

**Luke noticed me looking at it. "Oh, this? New toy. This is Backbiter."**

**"Backbiter?"**

**Luke turned the blade in the light so it glinted wickedly. "One side is celestial bronze. The other is tempered steel. Works on mortals and immortals both."**

Artemis' already pale skin turned the colour of ice as she shot a look at her hunter.

"It can't be…?"

Thalia's face went dark and she just nodded slightly. The moon goddess leaned back into her chair, looking as though she was about to faint.

**I thought about what Chiron had told me when I started my quest—that a hero should never harm mortals unless absolutely necessary.**

**"I didn't know they could make weapons like that."**

_**"They**___**probably can't," Luke agreed. "It's one of a kind."**

All the demigods flinched at this, several remembering the havoc caused by that one blade.

**He gave me a tiny smile, then slid the sword into its scabbard. "Listen, I was going to come looking for you. What do you say we go down to the woods one last time, look for something to fight?"**

**I don't know why I hesitated.**

**I should've felt relieved that Luke was being so friendly. Ever since I'd gotten back from the quest, he'd been acting a little distant. I was afraid he might resent me for all the attention I'd gotten.**

**"You think it's a good idea?" I asked. "I mean—"**

**"Aw, come on." He rummaged in his gym bag and pulled out a six-pack of Cokes. "Drinks are on me."**

"Ugh, I hate it that he was so good at that!" Travis sighed.

"Yeah, he could get anyone to do anything he wanted!" Connor added as Hermes looked at his children sadly. Everyone in the room picked up that they were using the past tense to talk about their brother.

"Yes, and it caused us a right pain in the neck too!" Will groaned, rolling his shoulders as if they pained him. Having learnt not to ask for answers by this point, all of the gods looked at the messenger and waited for him to read on.

**I stared at the Cokes, wondering where the heck he'd gotten them. There were no regular mortal sodas at the camp store. No way to smuggle them in unless you talked to a satyr, maybe.**

**Of course, the magic dinner goblets would fill with anything you want, but it just didn't taste the same as a real Coke, straight out of the can.**

**Sugar and caffeine. My willpower crumbled.**

Annabeth laughed from her position, kneeling beside her mother, but made no further comment as everyone else just shot amused looks at Percy.

**"Sure," I decided. "Why not?"**

"Because he is going to try and kill you." Nico whispered, making everyone near him flinch when they heard. Percy just grinned.

"Emphasis on the _try."_

**We walked down to the woods and kicked around for some kind of monster to fight, but it was too hot. All the monsters with any sense must've been taking siestas in their nice cool caves.**

**We found a shady spot by the creek where I'd broken Clarisse's spear during my first capture the flag game. We sat on a big rock, drank our Cokes, and watched the sunlight in the woods.**

**After a while Luke said, "You miss being on a quest?"**

"Why?" Rachel asked looking confused. "From what I heard, all you do on quests is nearly get killed over and over!"

All the demigods just looked at her as though she had gone mad, finally, Clarisse spoke up.

"That's what makes it so fun!"

Percy rolled his eyes but spoke through a grin, "Yep, nothing like the adrenalin of running away from a gorgon!"

**"With monsters attacking me every three feet? Are you kidding?"**

**Luke raised an eyebrow.**

**"Yeah, I miss it," I admitted. "You?"**

**A shadow passed over his face.**

**I was used to hearing from the girls how good-looking Luke was, but at the moment, he looked weary, and angry, and not at all handsome. His blond hair was gray in the sunlight. The scar on his face looked deeper than usual. I could imagine him as an old man.**

**"I've lived at Half-Blood Hill year-round since I was fourteen," he told me. "Ever since Thalia ... well, you know. I trained, and trained, and trained. I never got to be a normal teenager, out there in the real world. Then they threw me one quest, and when I came back, it was like, 'Okay, ride's over. Have a nice life.'"**

"I guess I can see where you guys are coming from, if you put it that way." Rachel conceded while the gods just looked around guiltily.

**He crumpled his Coke can and threw into the creek, which really shocked me. One of the first things you learn at Camp Half-Blood is: Don't litter. You'll hear from the nymphs and the naiads. They'll get even. You'll crawl into bed one night and find your sheets filled with centipedes and mud.**

Will flinched, "That's if you're lucky!"

Katie smiled coyly, "They once chained one of the guys in our cabin to a tree for a full day in the middle of winter for it."

"And you didn't help the nymphs in the slightest, did you Katie?" Travis shot at her as the girl went bright red and became fascinated by the zip pocket on her jeans.

**"The heck with laurel wreaths," Luke said. "I'm not going to end up like those dusty trophies in the Big House attic."**

**"You make it sound like you're leaving."**

**Luke gave me a twisted smile. "Oh, I'm leaving, all right, Percy. I brought you down here to say good-bye."**

Poseidon groaned, "I don't like were this is going!"

**He snapped his fingers. A small fire burned a hole in the ground at my feet. Out crawled something glistening black, about the size of my hand. A scorpion.**

**I started to go for my pen.**

**"I wouldn't," Luke cautioned. "Pit scorpions can jump up to fifteen feet. Its stinger can pierce right through your clothes. You'll be dead in sixty seconds."**

The throne room of Olympus was filled with silence before, a second later, the dam broke and the rage of the sea could be felt all over.

"HERMES! I swear on the Styx, if your son…"

Percy broke him off quickly, shoving his father back into is throne. "I'm right here dad!"

"Fine, I shall let the matter rest… for now!"

**"Luke, what—"**

**Then it hit me.**

_**You will be betrayed by one who calls you a friend.**_

Athena sighed, "I hate being right sometimes!" Everyone else just looked at her in shock before she sniffed self consciously. "What, wisdom can be both a blessing and a curse at times!"

**"You," I said.**

**He stood calmly and brushed off his jeans.**

**The scorpion paid him no attention. It kept its beady black eyes on me, clamping its pincers as it crawled onto my shoe.**

**"I saw a lot out there in the world, Percy," Luke said. "Didn't you feel it—the darkness gathering, the monsters growing stronger? Didn't you realize how useless it all is? All the heroics—being pawns of the gods. They should've been overthrown**

**thousands of years ago, but they've hung on, thanks to us half-bloods."**

Reyna frowned, "I hate to agree with the boy, as I can pretty much guess what he does in the future, but he does have a point!"

**I couldn't believe this was happening.**

**"Luke ... you're talking about our parents," I said.**

**He laughed. "That's supposed to make me love them? Their precious 'Western civilization is a disease, Percy. It's killing the world. The only way to stop it is to burn it to the ground, start over with something more honest."**

**"You're as crazy as Ares."**

The war god growled as the rest of the room filled with some tense laughter. Hermes however, just looked frantic, he didn't want to know where this was going.

**His eyes flared. "Ares is a fool. He never realized the true master he was serving. If I had time, Percy, I could explain. But I'm afraid you won't live that long."**

**The scorpion crawled onto my pants leg.**

Annabeth whimpered, she had never heard the exact details of this event.

**There had to be a way out of this. I needed time to think.**

**"Kronos," I said. "That's who you serve."**

**The air got colder.**

**"You should be careful with names," Luke warned.**

"Yes, because Percy is always careful with names!" Nico sighed, rolling his eyes.

**"Kronos got you to steal the master bolt and the helm. He spoke to you in your dreams."**

**Luke's eye twitched. "He spoke to you, too, Percy. You should've listened."**

That new hit the room like a bomb had gone off and the god of thieves found himself surrounded by some _very _angry family members.

"HERMES! Your son has been consorting with father, and stole my bolt!"

"That is _not _cool bro, _not cool!"_

"I swear nephew, the boy needs some more cereal!"

"We cannot ignore the threat of Kronos any longer, it would not be wise."

"HERMES, I AM GOING TO KILL YOU FOR GETTING MY SON INTO THIS SITUATION!"

The god was flinching in his throne, trying to hide from all the weapons now aimed at him before something happened that shocked all of the gods (and a few of the demigods) in the room. Calmly and coolly, all of the older Greek demigods, came to stand in front of him. First were his sons, but they were soon followed by Katie, Will, Nico, Thalia, Clarisse, Percy, Annabeth and Rachel who all formed a protective wall in front of the cowering god. Finally Annabeth stepped forwards.

"Do not hate him, my lords and ladies, Luke's choices where his own and I swear down on the Styx that he has been punished enough in our time. Lord Hermes did his best to stop him as did we all, there is no need to argue about things that have already happened for us!"

At this, all of the deities returned to their thrones under the girls glared, shocked slightly by her oath. Happy to be out of the line of fire, Hermes read on as the demigods regained their seats.

**"He's brainwashing you, Luke."**

**"You're wrong. He showed me that my talents are being wasted. You know what my quest was two years ago, Percy? My father, Hermes, wanted me to steal a golden apple from the Garden of the Hesperides and return it to Olympus. After all the training I'd done,**_**that**___**was the best he could think up."**

Hermes looked at the book, stunned at what he had just read, tears glistening in his eyes. Before long, he looked up and spoke in a choked voice. "I don't want to read this anymore."

Sighing slightly, but with a look of compassion on his face, Apollo leaned over and took the book from his limp hands. "I guess I will then."

**"That's not an easy quest," I said. "Hercules did it."**

**"Exactly," Luke said. "Where's the glory in repeating what others have done? All the gods know how to do is replay their past. My heart wasn't in it. The dragon in the garden gave me this"—he pointed angrily at his scar—"and when I came back, all I got was pity. I wanted to pull Olympus down stone by stone right then, but I bided my time. I began to dream of Kronos. He convinced me to steal something worthwhile, something no hero had ever had the courage to take. When we went on that winter-solstice field trip, while the other campers were asleep, I snuck into the throne room and took Zeus's master bolt right from his chair. Hades's helm of darkness, too. You wouldn't believe how easy it was. The Olympians are so arrogant; they never dreamed someone would dare steal from them. Their security is horrible. I was halfway across New Jersey before I heard the storms rumbling, and I knew they'd discovered my** **theft."**

"As much as I hate him, I do admire that he was able to do that." Travis sighed, before flinching under Zeus' glare, "Sorry!"

**The scorpion was sitting on my knee now, staring at me with its glittering eyes. I tried to keep my voice level. "So why didn't you bring the items to Kronos?"**

**Luke's smile wavered. "I ... I got overconfident. Zeus sent out his sons and daughters to find the stolen bolt— Artemis, Apollo, my father, Hermes. But it was Ares who caught me. I could have beaten him, but I wasn't careful enough. He disarmed me, took the items of power, threatened to return them to Olympus and burn me alive. Then Kronos's voice came to me and told me what to say. I put the idea in Ares's head about a great war between the gods. I said all he had to do was hide the items away for a while and watch the others fight.**

Clarisse sighed, "The perfect bait!" Her father just looked at the floor, ashamed.

**Ares got a wicked gleam in his eyes. I knew he was hooked. He let me go, and I returned to Olympus before anyone noticed my absence." Luke drew his new sword. He ran his thumb down the flat of the blade, as if he were hypnotized by its beauty.**

**"Afterward, the Lord of the Titans ... h-he punished me with nightmares. I swore not to fail again. Back at Camp Half-Blood, in my dreams, I was told that a second hero would arrive, one who could be tricked into taking the bolt and the helm the rest of the way—from Ares down to Tartarus."**

**"**_**You**___**summoned the hellhound, that night in the forest."**

Thalia and Annabeth growled under their breaths at this, and Percy reached across to squeeze his girlfriend's hand reassuringly.

**"We had to make Chiron think the camp wasn't safe for you, so he would start you on your quest. We had to confirm his fears that Hades was after you. And it worked."**

**"The flying shoes were cursed," I said. "They were supposed to drag me and the backpack into Tartarus."**

**"And they would have, if you'd been wearing them. But you gave them to the satyr, which wasn't part of the plan. Grover messes up everything he touches. He even confused the curse."**

For once, Zeus didn't make a comment, he was too preoccupied with the thought of n old enemy rising.

**Luke looked down at the scorpion, which was now sit ting on my thigh. "You should have died in Tartarus, Percy. But don't worry, I'll leave you with my little friend to set things right."**

**"Thalia gave her life to save you," I said, gritting my teeth. "And this is how you repay her?"**

**"Don't speak of Thalia!" he shouted. "The gods**_**let**___**her die! That's one of the many things they will pay for."**

"I AM NOT LETTING YOU BLAME ME FOR YOUR BETREYAL!" The daughter of Zeus exploded, glaring at the book in the sun god's hands.

**"You're being used, Luke. You and Ares both. Don't listen to Kronos."**

_**"I've**___**been used?" Luke's voice turned shrill. "Look at yourself. What has your dad ever done for you? Kronos will rise. You've only delayed his plans. He will cast the Olympians into Tartarus and drive humanity back to their caves. All except the strongest—the ones who serve him."**

**"Call off the bug," I said. "If you're so strong, fight me yourself"**

"A good try, but I don't think it will work." Athena sighed sadly.

**Luke smiled. "Nice try, Percy. But I'm not Ares. You can't bait me. My lord is waiting, and he's got plenty of quests for me to undertake."**

**"Luke—"**

**"Good-bye, Percy. There is a new Golden Age coming. You won't be part of it."**

**He slashed his sword in an arc and disappeared in a ripple of darkness.**

**The scorpion lunged.**

Poseidon flinched and turned deathly pale. He quickly strode across the room to snatch up the younger form of his son before returning to his throne, he needed something to hold on to for reassurance.

**I swatted it away with my hand and uncapped my sword. The thing jumped at me and I cut it in half in midair.**

**I was about to congratulate myself until I looked down at my hand. My palm had a huge red welt, oozing and smoking with yellow guck. The thing had gotten me after all.**

**My ears pounded. My vision went foggy. The water, I thought. It healed me before.**

Poseidon groaned, "Not this time."

**I stumbled to the creek and submerged my hand, but nothing seemed to happen. The poison was too strong. My vision was getting dark. I could barely stand up.**

_**Sixty seconds,**___**Luke had told me.**

**I had to get back to camp. If I collapsed out here, my body would be dinner for a monster. Nobody would ever know what had happened.**

**My legs felt like lead. My forehead was burning. I stumbled toward the camp, and the nymphs stirred from their trees.**

"They're going to help him!" Demeter spoke soothingly to her brother who was having a panic attack, "They will take him to Chiron!"

**"Help," I croaked. "Please ..."**

**Two of them took my arms, pulling me along. I remember making it to the clearing, a counselor shouting for help, a centaur blowing a conch horn.**

**Then everything went black.**

**I woke with a drinking straw in my mouth. I was sipping something that tasted like liquid chocolate-chip cookies. Nectar.**

**I opened my eyes.**

**I was propped up in bed in the sickroom of the Big House, my right hand bandaged like a club. Argus stood guard in the corner. Annabeth sat next to me, holding my nectar glass and dabbing a washcloth on my forehead.**

Poseidon smiled weakly at the girl as her mother shot her another look. She still didn't like her daughter being so close to the sea rat.

**"Here we are again," I said.**

**"You idiot," Annabeth said, which is how I knew she was overjoyed to see me conscious.**

"Wow, that means that seaweed brain can actually speak girl!" Thalia said in mock amazement as her cousin joined in.

"Yes, though I never really did think that he was a boy, that must be why!"

**"You were green and turning gray when we found you. If it weren't for Chiron's healing ..."**

**"Now, now," Chiron's voice said. "Percy's constitution deserves some of the credit."**

**He was sitting near the foot of my bed in human form, which was why I hadn't noticed him yet. His lower half was magically compacted into the wheelchair, his upper half dressed in a coat and tie. He smiled, but his face looked weary and pale, the way it did when he'd been up all night grading Latin papers.**

**"How are you feeling?" he asked.**

**"Like my insides have been frozen, then microwaved."**

Leo shot him a weird look, "How do you even know what that feels like?"

Percy just shrugged, "I guessed."

**"Apt, considering that was pit scorpion venom. Now you must tell me, if you can, exactly what happened."**

**Between sips of nectar, I told them the story.**

**The room was quiet for a long time.**

**"I can't believe that Luke ..." Annabeth's voice faltered. Her expression turned angry and sad. "Yes. Yes, I**_**can**___**believe it. May the gods curse him... He was never the same after his quest."**

The gods winced at this statement, beginning to feel guilty again.

**"This must be reported to Olympus," Chiron murmured. "I will go at once."**

**"Luke is out there right now," I said. "I have to go after him."**

"Yes, like you can go after him in _that _state. I bet you can't even _move!"_ Dionysus snorted.

**Chiron shook his head. "No, Percy. The gods—"**

**"Won't even**_**talk**___**about Kronos," I snapped. "Zeus declared the matter closed!"**

**"Percy, I know this is hard. But you must not rush out for vengeance. You aren't ready."**

**I didn't like it, but part of me suspected Chiron was right.**

**One look at my hand, and I knew I wasn't going to be sword fighting any time soon.**

**"Chiron ... your prophecy from the Oracle ... it was about Kronos, wasn't it? Was I in it?****And Annabeth?"**

"He better remember his oath." Zeus murmured under his breath.

**Chiron glanced nervously at the ceiling. "Percy, it isn't my place—"**

**"You've been ordered not to talk to me about it, haven't you?"**

**His eyes were sympathetic, but sad. "You will be a great hero, child. I will do my best to prepare you. But if I'm right about the path ahead of you …"**

**Thunder boomed overhead, rattling the windows.**

**"All right!" Chiron shouted. "Fine!"**

**He sighed in frustration. "The gods have their reasons, Percy. Knowing too much of your future is never a good thing."**

**"We can't just sit back and do nothing," I said.**

**"**_**We**___**will not sit back," Chiron promised. "But**_**you**___**must be careful. Kronos wants you to come unraveled. He wants your life disrupted, your thoughts clouded with fear and anger. Do not give him what he wants. Train patiently. Your time will come."**

Annabeth sighed, "Yep."

Percy winced, "Yeah, and a lot sooner than I would have like too!"

**"Assuming I live that long."**

**Chiron put his hand on my ankle. "You'll have to trust me, Percy. You will live. But first you must decide your path for the coming year. I cannot tell you the right choice..." I got the feeling that he had a very definite opinion, and it was taking all his willpower not to advise me.**

The demigods all laughed at this, all of them feeling considerably less tense than the rest of the room, after all, this was old news for them.

**"But you must decide whether to stay at Camp Half-Blood year-round, or return to the mortal world for seventh grade and be a summer camper. Think on that. When I get back from Olympus, you must tell me your decision."**

**I wanted to protest. I wanted to ask him more questions. But his expression told me there could be no more discussion; he had said as much as he could.**

**"I'll be back as soon as I can," Chiron promised. "Argus will watch over you."**

**He glanced at Annabeth. "Oh, and, my dear ... whenever you're ready, they're here."**

"Who's here?" Athena asked, a look of confusion crossing her face.

Annabeth smiled before informing her helpfully, "People!"

**"Who's here?" I asked.**

**Nobody answered.**

**Chiron rolled himself out of the room. I heard the wheels of his chair clunk carefully down the front steps, two at a time.**

"I always feel sorry for him when it comes to that." Will commented, saking his head sadly.

**Annabeth studied the ice in my drink.**

**"What's wrong?" I asked her.**

**"Nothing." She set the glass on the table. "I … just took your advice about something. You … um … need anything?"**

"Could you be any more obvious in your change of subject?" Leo groaned.

**"Yeah. Help me up. I want to go outside."**

**"Percy, that isn't a good idea."**

**I slid my legs out of bed. Annabeth caught me before I could crumple to the floor. A wave of nausea rolled over me.**

**"I'm fine," I insisted. I didn't want to lie in bed like an invalid while Luke was out there planning to destroy the Western world.**

Anger began to swell in the room again, but Apollo decided to read on before any more could be said on the matter.

**I managed a step forward. Then another, still leaning heavily on Annabeth. Argus followed us outside, but he kept his distance.**

**By the time we reached the porch, my face was beaded with sweat. My stomach had twisted into knots. But I had managed to make it all the way to the railing.**

**It was dusk. The camp looked completely deserted. The cabins were dark and the volleyball pit silent. No canoes cut the surface of the lake. Beyond the woods and the strawberry fields, the Long Island Sound glittered in the last light of the sun.**

"I love that view." Piper sighed dreamily, she really did miss being at camp.

**"What are you going to do?" Annabeth asked me.**

**"I don't know."**

**I told her I got the feeling Chiron wanted me to stay year-round, to put in more individual training time, but I wasn't sure that's what I wanted. I admitted I'd feel bad about leaving her alone, though, with only Clarisse for company….**

Clarisse's eyes widen in mock hurt. "And what's so bad about me being there for company?"

"Um, you try to kill her every time you see her?" Will added.

"And your point is…?" Again, the demigods cracked up as the gods looked at their children in wonder, how could they all be so calm about this?

**Annabeth pursed her lips, then said quietly, "I'm going home for the year, Percy."**

**I stared at her. "You mean, to our dad's?"**

**She pointed toward the crest of Half-Blood Hill. Next to Thalia's pine tree, at the very edge of the camp's magical boundaries, a family stood silhouetted—two little children, a woman, and a tall man with blond hair. They seemed to be waiting. The man was holding a backpack that looked like the one Annabeth had gotten from Waterland in** **Denver.**

**"I wrote him a letter when we got back," Annabeth said. "Just like you suggested. I told him ... I was sorry. I'd come home for the school year if he still wanted me. He wrote back immediately. We decided ... we'd give it another try."**

"Thank you Annabeth." Athena sighed sadly.

"It was better the next time Mom, don't worry!"

**"That took guts."**

**She pursed her lips. "You won't try anything stupid during the school year, will you? At least … not without sending me an Iris-message?"**

**I managed a smile. "I won't go looking for trouble. I usually don't have to."**

Percy flinched, "I wish I knew what I was getting myself in for when I said that!"

**"When I get back next summer," she said, "we'll hunt down Luke. We'll ask for a quest, but if we don't get approval, we'll sneak off and do it anyway. Agreed?"**

**"Sounds like a plan worthy of Athena."**

**She held out her hand. I shook it.**

**"Take care, Seaweed Brain," Annabeth told me. "Keep your eyes open."**

**"You too, Wise Girl."**

"I _love _the nickname thing you have going on there, it's so _cuuuute!" _Aphrodite cooed while the two of them turned red faced and looked at anything except each other.

**I watched her walk up the hill and join her family. She gave her father an awkward hug and looked back at the valley one last time. She touched Thalia's pine tree, then allowed herself to be lead over the crest and into the mortal world.**

**For the first time at camp, I felt truly alone. I looked out at Long Island Sound and I remembered my father saying,**_**The sea does not like to be restrained.**_

**I made my decision.**

**I wondered, if Poseidon were watching, would he approve of my choice?**

**"I'll be back next summer," I promised him. "I'll survive until then. After all, I am your son." I asked Argus to take me down to cabin three, so I could pack my bags for home.**

"And that's the end of the book." Apollo said, placing the novel down on the arm of his chair. "Now what do we do?"

"I don't think we have much choice." Athena sighed, "I guess we have to read on and see what is to come."

Hades groaned. "More reading?"

Looking thoughtful, Zeus spoke up "I think we should all spend some time with our children before the next one though, it might be good to have a rest and get to know them better! All in favor?"

One bye one, all of the Olympians raised their hands and the demigods looked at each other in shock. Well, this was going to be fun!

**A/N: Thank you for reading all the way through guys, I'm going to put the final chapter up by the end of the week, then hopefully get started on SoM at the same time. If you have any suggestions on what they should do in their bonding time, don't hesitate to let me know. Anyway, One final chapter left to go WHOOOP WHOOOP, Ella is really happy! ^_^**


	25. Family time

**A/N: Okay, here we go, the final chapter for this story, but, don't worry, I'm writing the first chapter for SoM as you read this. Anyway, I would like to thank everyone that has stuck me all the way through this and for my friends and Anime Princess and everyone who has supplied me with endless ideas for how the story should end up ****.**

Finale

Jason's PoV:

After he dismissed the council, dad came over to me an Thalia, a huge grin on his face, and, to my surprise, Juno came with him, in her Roman aspect for a change.

"Who wants to go for flying lessons over New York."

Ooops, I thought I recognised that look in his eyes, well Thalia wasn't going to like this, but it might be better for her to overcome her fear at some point. However, I'd have to act fast before Thalia could decline and run off with her mistress, better to speak up now than let her get out of this. I flashed him a grin.

"Yeah, sure, let's go!"

Dad grinned like a little kid at Christmas, then he grabbed our arms and the world around me started swimming so hard that I had to squeeze my eyes shut instinctively before I threw up. When my head finally stopped spinning, I was able to make out the blood curdling screech coming from my left side and the cool wind brushing against my cheeks.

Thalia's PoV:

NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! This could NOT be happening! Gods, when we get down from here Jason is _so _dead! He _knew _I was terrified by heights, so why the Hades did he say yes?

Every time I looked down at the ant sized people rushing around the tiny streets below, my vision went hazy and nausea started to take hold of my stomach, better to look at something safer. Instead, I glared at Jason who was grinning at me. Yep, definitely going to kill him, lost little brother or not.

"Geeze Thals you couldn't have been any louder there could you?"

I sent him my deluxe, I-am-going-to-kill –you look and shoved him… right off of the edge of the empire estate building. Shit! My hear was literally beating in my mouth and my brain froze.

Without thinking, I jumped straight off after him, willing myself to fall faster until I caught him, forcing the wind to push me down until I reached out and snagged the back of his shirt. Relief made me almost dizzy and I nearly dropped him again. Then, through sheer force of will, I stopped us in our tracks. When we finally got back to the place where we had started from, all I could hear was the blood roaring in my ears, but I think, from the way he was shaking, Jason was crying.

Clutching him tighter, I looked down then threw him down again, not crying… laughing… the little prat!

Within seconds he was back up to my level, laying down and rolling in the air laughing so hard his eyes had been dilated. Looking around, I noticed that dad was there too, also laughing. Gods I hate my family!

Taking a step off of the building without really thinking until my feet touched the pavement of the street below. Oh my gods, I just jumped off of the top of the empire estate building!

Annabeth's PoV:

I stared across the table quickly before returning my attention to the toddler in my arms. Man this was awkward. Of course, when Zeus had told us to spend time with our parents, I was thrilled thinking that I was finally going to have a long, meaningful conversation with my Mother about my relationship with a certain seaweed brain. What I had not imagined however, was the fact that it would become an awkward meeting with me, Mom, and the girl I had seen hugging Percy when she had first appeared. Reyna. Well, at least I had baby Percy for company. I checked my watch, 57 minutes of the hour remaining, damn.

Reyna's PoV:

What was wrong with me? I had been in charge of a legion and commanded them on the battle field, so why now was I feeling intimidated by a small, blond haired girl with a baby and the goddess of crafts.

Just calm down Reyna, not much longer now.

Will's PoV:

Oh gods, why didn't I die in the last Titan war because this is sheer torture to say the least. I really think that I'm going to punch something. Hanging out with dad was just on the border of bearable but why did this idiot have to be here now?

"So _this _is what the Greek Olympus is like? HA, I think new Rome is better than this!"

I sighed and clamped my twitching hands together, this is not a situation that I can solve with a bow. I will not shoot my nephew, I will not shoot my nephew…

"My children fighting,

Life is so exciting now,

Will better not shoot!"

Okay, there goes dad and the stupid haikus again. Hmmm, my mantra says nothing about shooting my father, after all, it's not like it would hurt him… much.

Piper's PoV:

"No… No… No… Not this one either. Awwww what are we going to do with you Pipes."

I sighed and leaned back on the obnoxiously pink sofa and tried to hide, thought there was little chance of doing that in a room that was wallpapered in mirrors. Curse my stupid, narcissistic mother needing to look at herself every minute of every day.

"We have to find the _perfect _outfit for when we go back, and maybe my blessing too. Little Jason isn't going to know what hit him!"

I groaned, the second she had got me alone in her room, Mom had started quizzing me about boys and, she is _a lot _better at charm speak than I am. Suddenly, the last part of what she said hit me and I had to stop myself from slamming her head into one of the mirrors.

"NO, no blessing, please. The last time you did that, it took _forever _to get rid of!"

She just turned away from the closet and eyed me with a spark in her eyes that had me trying to sneak out of the room that had no doors, then she pounced.

Clarisse's PoV:

OW, dad really didn't pull any punches. Damn it, if Percy can beat him, so can I, no matter how much it hurts. Come on La Rue, on your feet now! Hmm, maybe I should get Frank to help.

Katie's PoV:

"No mom, I don't want any cereal!"

"Are you sure sweetie, you look a little pale, cereal would make you feel better!"

I shot a pleading look at Lady Persephone, begging my older sister for help. I mean, I love my mother and everything, but, she can be a bit obsessed with… certain things. Thankfully my sister shot me a grin and then distracted our mom.

"Mother, you would _love _to see what I have done with my garden…"

Thanks Seph, that aught to keep her occupied for a bit, time to go see what Travis is doing… hopefully without being caught.

Nico's PoV:

We were taking a long, long walk around Olympus and dad was in a seriously good mood… well until the shower of blue paint that hit him as we walked under the arch by Athena's temple. Now? Well, lets just say that some one was going to die today.

Connor's PoV: 

When dad told us the plan it seemed insane, now, it was great. Straight after he was dismissed, dad pulled us off to the side and started whispering in our ears about the mental idea he had been planning for weeks.

After arguing the finer details of the prank for the better part of half an hour, we were finally in place on top of the bridge between the temples of Athena and Ares.

"Now all we need to do is wait for one of the minor gods to pass under and wham, we get them! This is gonna be great!" Travis laughed, and the childish look on his face that I really couldn't help myself, I simply _had _to tease him.

"Yep, almost as great as the time you tied Katie up near the canoeing lake and spit balled her to ask her out."

That got dad focused on us, staring straight at my brother who was glaring at me. Funnily enough, they spoke at the same time.

"How do you mean he asked her out using spit balls?"

"YOU SWORE NOT TO TELL!"

Their faces looked so much like cartoon characters that I started rolling on the bridge due to my laughter, accidentally knocking the pots of blue paint off the bridge too early, but thanks to my luck, it landed, not on the pavement as it probably would have for anyone else (well, save Percy, but that guy is _really _hated by Nemesis,) it landed on a _very _angry death god. Whoops!

I looked around for dad to help but he had vanished along with Travis. _Thanks._

Percy PoV:

I sighed slightly and let my sword fall to the ground as I bent over to catch my breath, glancing up to my dad's smiling face.

After we had been told that we could spend an hour together, we had kind of spent the first 10 minutes talking awkwardly in the throne room before Lady Hestia just sighed and teleported us to camp. Dropping us off in the commons area where she was quite content to play with the fire in the centre. From the noise coming from behind the trees, it looked like there was a game of capture the flag going on. Not wanting to be noticed, we ran straight to the arena where we could hide. Unfortunately, this also gave dad the idea to test my swordsmanship.

We had been going at it for the last 40 minutes none stop and gods, I was tired. What was even more irritating however, was the fact that dad didn't even seem the slightest bit winded. Stupid gods with their stupid stamina and strength.

I bent down and clasped riptides slick handle, getting ready to charge again, but a polite cough stopped me as I turned to look at the entrance to the arena. Oops.

Standing there, looking completely stunned, was a centaur and some rather shocked looking campers. Guess we had been there for too long and we had made too much noise. So much for hiding. Thankfully, before anyone could talk to us, a rumble in the sky mean that we were needed back on Olympus. Saved by the bell… or by the dramatic uncle I guess.

Dad flashed us back to Olympus and we returned to our seats. Looks like we have a book to read.


End file.
